


The Kingdoms Magic

by PyreWrites



Category: The Librarians (TV 2014)
Genre: AU, Disney World, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Jassandra - Freeform, The Librarians fan event
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-10-22
Updated: 2016-08-03
Packaged: 2018-04-27 15:41:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5054437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PyreWrites/pseuds/PyreWrites
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He was hot. He was tired. His feet were killing him. And he had been standing in this line for 45 minutes. But none of that mattered because for the first time in nearly three years Jacob Stone was spending time with his family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Monday

**Author's Note:**

> I am taking some liberties with Disney World to suit the story. I know at least a few of the LITs are massive Disneyphiles so I hope they don't throw you out of the story too much. But that's why the call it an Alternate Universe.

He was hot. He was tired. His feet were killing him. And he had been standing in this line for 45 minutes. But none of that mattered because for the first time in nearly three years Jacob Stone was spending time with his family.

Ordinarily he would not have reacted this way to spending this much time with his family. But that was when they were back home. All the same old small town crap. All the same stresses of him hiding half of his life. Which was why every call, email, and letter over the last three years asking if he was coming home for the holidays or some family event or another had always been answered with the same excuse.

_Oil don't care that it's christmas. I gotta stay and work this year._

It saved him from having to avoid answering the same old questions. The most repetitive being when he was going to find a nice girl and settle down. He always answered half truthfully with something like nice girls don't work on oil rigs, or moving every year or so to go where the work is isn't 'settling down'. What he never said, to anyone, was _why_ the kind of girl he would settle down with didn't work on an oil rig. Because the kind of girl he would settle down with is someone he would meet in a museum lost in a Monet or a Van Gogh or a Picasso or any one of a thousand other artists his family has never even heard of. The kind of girl that wouldn't 'settle down' because she had a passport full of stamps, or had a passport _at all_ , because she wanted to see the world. She wouldn't be content to live and die with her entire life having been within 50 miles of the house she grew up in. The kind of girl he could be honest with. The kind of girl he didn't have to keep his guard up around. The kind of girl that would _understand_ him.

But this year was different. This year he didn't have to duck questions. This year he hadn't come home to visit his family. Because this year they weren't at home. This year all his brothers and sisters, all his nieces and nephews, even his parents, had gotten together and decided they were ALL going to go to Disney World. He had jumped at the chance. Even if it was streamlined, sanitized, and mass-marketed he thought taking the kids over to Epcot one day and exposing them to even the Disneyfied versions of other cultures might get them excited about the rest of the world and what it had to offer. It didn't hurt either that most of the conversations in the last three days had been about what ride to go on next. And on the few occasions that it had looked like someone was itching to grill him on his love life he had managed to "get stuck" taking the kids on a ride or taking some of the girls to go go meet one of the princesses. Which was where he was now. Standing in line with his sister Georgia's twins Margaret and Mathilda. While most of the rest of the family had gone off to ride The Pirates of the Caribbean.

"We saw her yesterday when we were heading back to Main Street for the Parade so we didn't get to stop. And she was gone when we got back." Margret was saying for the fourth time since they had gotten in line.

"That's too bad. Lucky she was still here today then, huh?" Jacob said ruffling her hair.

"Yeah!" Mathilda chimed in. "She is so much prettier than she is in the movie Unca Jacob."

"You be sure to tell her that. Bet she'd like that a lot." Jacob said with a chuckle.

"Next!" called the young blonde woman wearing a Disney nametag that read 'Becky' as she handed a camera back to the family that had been in front of Jacob and the girls.

The twins bolted as Jacob leaned back against the fence behind him and closed his eyes to enjoy the spot of shade he was in while the girls had their moment with the Princess. He only half listened because he knew the girls were well behaved.

"Oh my goodness! Don't you two look lovely!" the Princess exclaimed in a much more genuine voice than Jacob had expected. "And what are your names?"

"Thank you! I'm Margaret, but everybody calls me Maggie Sue."

"And I'm Mathilda but they call me Mattie May. You look very pretty too."

"Why thank you. Are you enjoying yourselves today?" the Princess asked.

Jacob allowed himself to zone out as the girls began to chatter about all the things they had done in the park.

"Now I must warn you that there are villains about." the Princess said to the girls. "You ladies should not travel without a royal escort or a brave Prince to protect you."

"He's right over there." Mattie said.

"Oh my! Is this handsome prince your father?" the Princess asked.

"Nope. That's our Uncle Jacob." Maggie answered.

"And does Uncle Jacob have a princess of his own to protect when he is not escorting you fine young ladies around the kingdom?" the Princess asked.

"Nah. He's always too busy working." Mattie said sourly.

"Oh? Well then I think I should extend the gratitude of the kingdom to him for taking time from his busy schedule to escort two of my fellow princess on their journey."

Jacob heard footsteps approaching him.

"Princess Ariel, this is our Uncle Jacob." Maggie said proudly.

Jacob dropped his head forward and opened his eyes. He was greeted by the most dazzling blue eyes he had ever seen. He was so awestruck that he was unable to make a single artistic comparison for the color of her eyes or her cascading red locks that framed an angelically beautiful face.

'Ariel' giggled as Jacob stared and stammered. If he had been capable of coherent thought he would have said it sounded almost musical.

"Good Sir Jacob. I give to you the thanks of the kingdom, for your service in protecting two of our most beautiful princesses. As a token of our gratitude, if you are ever in need do not hesitate to contact me and I will do everything in my power to assist you." Ariel said as she curtsied.

"My thanks to you, Princess Ariel." Jacob said after finally finding his voice again. "And if ever your Prince Eric finds himself indisposed defending the kingdom it would be my honor to act as your guardian in his stead."

Jacob took Ariel's hand and placed a light kiss on her knuckles. When he looked back up she was smiling shyly at him and a slight blush had colored the fair skin of her cheeks.

"That would be quite agreeable. Thank you. Now I do believe your young charges would like to take a picture before you continue on to discover more pleasures the kingdom has to offer."

As Jacob handed the girl with the nametag his phone he noticed that Ariel did not drop his hand. In fact she waited for him and then slipped her hand fully into his grasp as they took their place behind the twins.

 

"Might I ask." Ariel said after the picture, still holding Jakes hand. "How much longer will you be the guest of the kingdom?"

"The rest of the week, Princess." Jacob said.

"Well then. The paths of Princess Ariel and the very handsome Sir Jacob might cross again during your stay." she said with the same shy smile.

"That," Jacob said as he kissed her hand again. "Would be quite agreeable."

She blushed again as she turned back to the twins.

"It was very lovely to meet you Maggie Sue and Mattie May. I do hope I get to see you again before you leave."

"Us too!" The girls said in unison as they wrapped her in a hug.

 

As the twins dragged Jacob away to find a snack bar so they could get something to drink he looked back over his shoulder and smiled one last time at Ariel, who he noticed was already looking at him as they left. She gave him a small wave as her cheeks colored again. She turned to greet the next group of children that came running up to her and Jacob turned back to the twins and their epic quest.

 

* * *

 

He wasn't doing it on purpose, he was sure of that (pretty sure?… mostly sure?... sixty percent sure?). But for the rest of the day it seemed that every ride, gift shop, snack bar, or restroom he and the girls went in search of their path always seemed to pass right by Princess Ariel. He would be walking with the girls in search of something or another and the girls would stop short and shout.

"Hello Princess Ariel!"

Each time she saw them Jacob swore her eyes lit up. The girls would wave and she returned it. She also gave Jacob a small smile and another wave after the girls turned away.

Near sunset, after they had finished dinner, they passed by Ariel's spot only to find she was gone. Jacob couldn't tell who was more disappointed. The twins or him.

"How 'bout we come back and see her tomorrow?" Jacob asked as the twins pouted.

"Yes!" Maggie shouted.

"You promise?" Mattie said.

"I promise." Jacob said with an emphatic nod.

"Pinkie swear?" Mattie asked holding out her hand, pinkie extended.

"Pinkie swear." Jacob said looping his finger with hers. "We can even do it first thing if you want."

"Yay!" The twins both cheered.

"Now let's go find everybody else. There's about an hour until the fireworks. Gotta go find a good spot."

 


	2. Tuesday Morning

The next morning during breakfast the girls were regaling their mother with tales of their adventures yesterday and how nice Princess Ariel had been. They told her all about "Sir Jacob", which earned him a smirk from his big sister.

"She sounds lovely." Georgia said once the twins let her get a word in edgewise. "Would the three of you mind if I tagged along to meet Ariel this morning?"

The twins both looked at him with their biggest puppy dog eyes.

"Fine by me. But seriously, put those things away. You know I'm powerless against that." Jacob said shielding his eyes. "Your Mama used to pull the same trick whenever she wanted to get out of chores so she could go spend time with some boy."

Georgia's napkin hit Jacob in the face.

"I _never_ got you to do my chores so I could spend time with a boy."

Jacob simply cocked an eyebrow at her.

"That you can prove." She reluctantly finished.

Jacob chuckled and the girls giggled.

"You two done with your food?" Jacob asked the twins.

"Almost!" They both answered.

"As soon as everybody's finished eatin' the four of us can go see Ariel again." Jacob said with a smile.

"Yay!" Mattie cheered through a mouthful of pancakes, spraying crumbs across the table.

"Mattie May! No talking with your mouth full!" Georgie scolded.

"Sowwy Mawmaw." Mattie mumbled.

Georgie raised an eyebrow at her. Mattie quickly chewed and swallowed.

"Sorry, Mama." Mattie repeated.

Maggie giggled as she chewed on her last piece of bacon.

 

* * *

 

A few minutes later the four of them were headed for the Monorail platform in the hotel. The twins were bouncing around looking down the track willing the Monorail to hurry.

"I'm glad you could make it." Georgia said to Jacob. "All the kids have missed you. Especially the twins."

"Me too." Jacob said with an easy smile. "Hey, I was thinkin' that maybe we could all go over to Epcot for at least part of a day before we leave. Since we can't go travel the world on this trip I'd kinda like to show the kids a bit of that there is more to the world than Oklahoma."

"That actually sounds like a good idea." Georgia said. "When did my baby brother get so smart?"

The Monorail pulling up cut off any answer Jacob might have come up with. They piled aboard and headed for the park.

 

* * *

 

The twins dragged Jacob and Georgia through the park making a beeline for Ariel's Grotto. They rounded the last corner and the twins stopped short, Jacob and Georgia nearly tripping over them.

"Aaawww! It's not the same Ariel today!" Maggie exclaimed.

"Aw man!" Mattie joined in.

Jacob fought to not show his disappointment in front of his sister as she shot him a sideways glance, a smirk already playing across her lips.

"Can we go meet her anyway?" Georgia said to the girls. "I'd like a picture with my girls and their favorite princess too. Even if it's not your favoritest favorite."

"Ok Mama." The girls both said.

"It shouldn't take more than a few minutes since it's early. Then we can go on some of the rides right around here before we go find everybody else." She said.

 

* * *

 

Fifteen minutes later Georgia had her picture and they were headed for the rides. Starting with Cinderella's Carousel because merry-go-rounds had always been Georgia's favorite. Followed by two rides on Dumbo. The ride didn't seat four so the twins decided they would trade off because they each wanted one ride with Georgia and one ride with Jacob. After a few more rides they found themselves in line for the teacups.

"C'mon Mama!" Maggie pleaded.

"Nope." Georgia said flatly. "I'll stay out here and take pictures. You can have fun with Uncle Jacob. He'll spin you as fast as you want to go."

"Promise?" Mattie said to him.

"Pinkie swear. But you better be sure to hold on cuz I don't want my favorite nieces to go flyin if I go too fast. You girls don't have any fairy dust so the landing would be a bit bumpy." Jacob said to the girls with a grin.

They both giggled and hugged him just as the ride operator called them up to be seated. Once they were situated and waiting for the ride to start, Jacob took a few test spins with their teacup. The girls squealed with delight.

"You better go real fast Uncle Jacob!" Mattie shouted as the ride lurched to life.

"You better hold on!" Jacob shouted with a wink as he started their cup spinning.

The faster they spun the more the girls laughed. He was sure his arms were getting at least as much of a workout as they did in a full days work on a rig. He heard Georgia's voice but didn't catch what she had yelled. He glanced up and saw the world outside had been reduced to blurs of color. Blues, yellows, greens, reds, purples, oranges all whipping by. He caught a glimpse of a unique shade of red followed by musical notes his brain tried to recognize before they were both gone.

Once the operator called out that the ride was ending Jacob let their cup spin freely until it eventually came to a stop, after most of the other riders had already left. The girls hopped out and ran to their mother laughing the entire way. Jacob, on the other hand, was slightly less steady on his feet. Needing to lean on other cups on his way to the edge of the platform of the ride.

"Can we go again?" He heard the girls shouting as he stumbled out of the exit gate.

"Um, maybe later girls." Georgia said. "Uncle Jacob looks about as bad as Captain hook after tanglin with that alligator."

"Tick-Tock was a crocodile." Jacob groaned as he sank onto a nearby bench.

"Whatever." Georgia said with a smile.

"Mama!" Maggie said. "Can we go on It's a Small World next?"

"Sure hon." Georgia said. "We could wait for ya so you could come with baby brother."

"No thanks. I'm close enough to losing my breakfast without getting that song stuck in my head for the rest of the year." Jacob said with a grimace. "You go ahead. I'll text you when I could pass a roadside sobriety test again and catch up with you later."

 

* * *

 

Jacob sat with his head in his hands listening to the twins chattering and laughing with their mother as they walked away when he felt a shadow fall over his face.

"You look a bit green around the gills cowboy." A slightly familiar feminine voice said. "Drink this. Ginger ale will settle your stomach."

Jacob slowly wrapped his hand around the cold cup he felt press against his fingers.

"Did you know the concessions stand right over there sells three times as much ginger ale as the entire rest of the park combined?" The voice continued. "No. You probably didn't know that. How would you?"

Jacob sipped the drink, his stomach already starting to feel better.

"Are you feeling any better?" She asked after a minute.

"Yeah, a bit. Thanks." Jacob croaked. He started to raise his head to see who his guardian angel was, but was hit with another wave of dizziness. He groaned. "So what does the concessions stand sell to stop the world from spinning?"

She giggled. It sounded like music.

"Nothing I'm afraid. That is just a matter of time." She said. "Much like shaking up a can of pop, the fluid in your inner ear has been agitated. It has to settle on its own. But if you would like, a funnel cake might make the wait a little more pleasant."

"No. But thank you." Jacob said a bit more steadily.

He raised his head, _much_ more slowly this time. He saw a pair of sky blue Chuck Taylor's. Each shoe was laced with two laces, each lace not matching any of the other three. Then a pair of faded ripped jeans, the holes in the knees revealing pale skin. A blue and white plaid flannel, sleeves rolled up past the elbows of equally pale arms. A skin tone Jacob was sure should not be able to exist in Florida. The bottom of the shirt knotted across the midsection of a torso wearing a lilac Cheshire Cat t-shirt. The Cat's smile was only slightly wider than the one spread across the face of the woman staring down at him. Her eyes were hidden behind a large pair of black sunglasses with a red plastic bow with white polka dots mounted on one corner. Her hair was hidden under a baseball cap that had a stylized circular logo with something that resembled a bird inside it. Block letters spelling out S.H.I.E.L.D. across the logo.

"That was quite impressive." She said nodding towards the teacups. "You peaked at one hundred thirty-seven point two rpm's."

"Point two?" Jacob asked raising an eyebrow at her.

"I'm good at math." She said with a dismissive shrug as she moved to sit down next to Jacob.

"So do you just hang out here buying ginger ale for everybody that looks like they are going to toss their cookies or am I special?"

"You looked like you were in need of assistance, and a ginger ale is well within my power. Especially with an employee discount."

Jacob could feel how obvious the look of confusion was on his face. It felt even more obvious when she giggled again. Jacob involuntarily smiled at the sound.

"Why good Sir Jacob, don't you recognize me?" She said smiling shyly. She slid her sunglasses down her nose revealing the same dazzling blue eyes he had been thinking about since the day before. "You wouldn't go back on your word to a princess that finds herself in need of an escort, would you?"

Jacob stammered, which caused 'Ariel' to giggle once again as she began to blush.

"You," He finally managed.

"Me," She said with an emphatic nod.

"Yeah. No! I mean, what are you doing here?" Jacob said as his brain finally began functioning again.

"It's my day off. I was on my way to see if Jodi would do me a small favor." She answered.

"Jodi?" Jacob asked. "Wait, no. It's none of my business."

"Jodi is todays Ariel." She said.

"Oh. Yeah. We met her. It was the first thing the twins wanted to do today. They were really disappointed that you weren't working." Jacob said.

"Just the girls?" She said with a small hopeful smile.

"Well…no. Not just the girls." Jacob said rubbing the back of his neck and turning away to hide the blush he felt rising to his cheeks.

She giggled again and Jacob looked back at her. Her smile was even brighter than it had been moments ago when he first looked up at her.

"That's, um, actually the reason I was going to see Jodi. The favor I was going to ask." She said, the color on her cheeks had to match his own Jacob was sure. "I was going to ask her to slip you my phone number if you stopped by today."

"Oh." Jacob said.

"Is that a good 'oh' or bad?" She asked cautiously.

"Good. It's good." Jacob said grinning at the redhead. "And speaking of good things, may I say blue is a very good color on you."

"Why thank you Sir Jacob." She said with something that resembled a curtsey, despite being seated.

"You have me at a disadvantage your highness. Unless your real name just happens to be Ariel." Jacob said with a chuckle.

"Oh! Of course." She said with a giggle as she extended her hand. "Cassandra. I'm Cassandra Cillian."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Miss Cassandra Cillian." Jacob said kissing her hand instead of shaking it. "I'm Jacob Stone."

"Are you this much of a gentleman with all the girls that buy you ginger ale or am I special?" Cassandra asked, batting her lashes at Jacob.

Jacob laughed out loud.

"Would you believe yes on both counts?" He said still laughing.

Cassandra raised an eyebrow.

"Well you are the first girl to ever buy me a ginger ale, so that in itself makes you special."

"Oh that is smooth." She said with a laugh of her own. "I take it you are feeling better then?"

"Yeah, think I am."

"Do you need to meet the twins and, I'm guessing, their mother anywhere right away?"

"Yeah. That's their mom, my older sister Georgia. And good God no, I don't need to meet them soon." Jacob said grimacing.

Cassandra looked at him, shocked.

"They're on their way to It's A Small World right now." Jacob explained.

"Ooooooh. Yeah. No need to rush then. I work here and I wouldn't go on that ride if I could avoid it. I just walk by and the song gets stuck in my head for a week."

"Ha! Thank you. I'm glad I'm not alone."

"Not by a long shot." Cassandra said with a grin. "So since you have some time to kill, do you have a favorite ride you'd like to go on?"

"Actually, no. No favorite ride." Jacob said with a shrug. "But I _can_ tell you It's A Small World and the Teacups are at the bottom of the list."

Cassandra giggled.

"Good choice. So how do you not have a favorite ride?"

"Would you believe this week is the first time I've ever been to any Disney park?"

"Oh my goodness!"

"Yeah. My dad ran his own business when we were growing up. He still does, but almost entirely from his desk these days. My Brother-In-Law, Georgia's husband, handles the day to day stuff now. He didn't trust anybody to run things enough to take a vacation when we we young, and no way could Mama handle the five of us on a trip on her own."

"Five! Good call Mama." Cassandra said. "And Disney isn't exactly a day trip from Oklahoma."

"Yeah. Me and four sist-Wait! What did you just say?"

"Disney isn't exactly a day trip from Oklahoma?"

"Yeah. How did you know I'm from Oklahoma?"

"Your accent. It's just something I've picked up, especially working here. You hear all kinds of accents and I, at least, pick things up."

"Oh really?"

"Well your accent is Southern. But there are loads of variations of the Southern accent. You don't have the velvety Deep South accent or the Appalachian twist it gets as you move north. You don't quite have the Texas twang. And you don't have the midwestern accent either. But there are hints of both around the edges that you really only get in Oklahoma."

Jacob whistled.

"That's impressive darlin'."

Cassandra blushed, smiled, and looked away.

"Sorry! Force of habit. I'm an idjit. I didn't mean-"

"Jake, it's ok. I kinda like it." Cassandra gently cut him off placing a hand on his arm.

"Really?" He said as goosebumps ran up his arm from the point of contact.

"Yes." She said with a bright smile.

"Ok. And I kinda like it when you call me Jake. Everybody else always calls me Jacob."

"Then Jake it is. So there were really five of you?"

"Yeah. Me and four sisters. Two older, two younger. I'm in the middle."

"That sounds wonderful."

"Oh really? Care to try it?" He said with a chuckle.

"I'd love to. I was an only child."

"Ah. That explains it. Grass is always greener."

"Yeah. So you really don't have a favorite ride here?" She asked as she rose from the bench they shared.

"Not yet."

"In that case I have something to show you." Cassandra said looping her arm through his. "You can tell me all about growing up with a big family as we walk."

 

* * *

 

Jake didn't know how long they had been standing in line before he realized they had stopped walking. He had been so engrossed in his conversation with Cassandra he didn't even know long they had been talking.

"This is what you wanted to show me?" He asked as he looked around. "Where are we?"

"Yes, here and inside. This is the Haunted Mansion." Cassandra said beaming at him. "It's one of my favorite places in the park."

"Really? And why is that?"

"I'll tell you in a bit. I want you to experience the ride like everybody else the first time we go on."

"First time?" Jake asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yes first time. We are going to ride it three times, at least."

"Three?"

"At least." Cassandra said with a smile as they stepped out of the sunlight into the Mansion. "I wouldn't object if you like it and want to go a few more times."

 

* * *

 

A number of times on the ride when Jake found himself fully engrossed in the ride, in the story that was being told, he heard a small giggle or a sigh and he spotted Cassandra staring at him out of the corner of his eye. She was watching him watch the ride, with a smile on her face. Each time he noticed, a smile spread across his face even though he didn't turn to face her, not wanting to miss any of the ride. When the ride reached the Hall of Mirrors she actually laughed out loud at Jake's reaction to their uninvited guest. As they stepped off the ride Cassandra slipped her hand into his and looked at him expectantly.

"Alrighty. That was fun," Jake said smiling. "Now are you gonna tell me why this is your favorite spot darlin'?"

"Not quite yet," Cassandra said returning his smile. "This time I want to to look at everything _else_. Ignore what you are supposed to look at this time. Instead look at the wallpaper, the light fixtures, all the set dressing in the entire ride, everything _else_."

"If you say so."

"I do say so," Cassandra said with an determined nod.

 

* * *

 

They stepped back into the Mansion and Cassandra watched Jake as he inspected the room. Once she was sure he had taken in the little details of the room she leaned over to him.

"All the stretching pictures are hand painted," She whispered to him.

Jake has to suppress the shiver that ran down his spine at the caress of her breath on his ear.

"When the old ones need to be replaced they have new ones made from scratch," She continued.

He looked at her to find her smiling at him again. She gestured at the walls after several long moments of staring at each other. He looked back up at the paintings inspecting the technique and not the subject matter. He nodded appreciatively.

When they climbed into their Doombuggy Cassandra snuggled up to Jakes side. He put his arm around her and pulled her a little closer. He heard her give a contented sigh as she rested her head on his shoulder. As they rounded the corner into the Library she lifted her head.

"Every single one of those books has a title and author on their spine," She said pointing at the shelves. "Many of them are Disney references. Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Peter Pan. Some of them are inside jokes of a sort. There are autobiographies by Micky, Minnie, , Daisy, and Goofy in there. There are loads of other titles and authors in there too that are Disney related."

Jake leaned forward and squinted at the books. Cassandra laughed.

"You won't be able to read any of them from here. They are too far away and it's too dark."

Jake slumped back into the seat and looked at her. Seeing the amused smile on her face he couldn't help but smile back. As they entered the Music Room she gestured towards the piano.

"That sheet music is the music that is being played in this room right now. And no, you won't be able to read that from here either." She said as she laid her head back on his shoulder.

Jake just chuckled.

"This next one is pretty interesting," Cassandra said as they slipped out of the Music Room. "These staircases were inspired by M.C. Escher's 'Relativity'."

"Just like the end of Labyrinth," Jake said casually.

"The end of what?" Cassandra asked looking up at him.

"The movie Labyrinth?" He said looking back at her.

She looked at him still obviously not recognizing the title.

"David Bowie? Jennifer Connelly? A truckload of Henson creations?"

"Haven't seen it yet." She said.

"Yet? It came out in 1986." He said stunned.

"My parents weren't big on movies. If it wasn't educational or would look good on college applications they considered it 'frivolous'." The tone of her voice was an odd combination of bitter and sad.

"Oh," Jake said quietly. "Well you should add it to your to be watched list. So you're familiar with Escher?"

"Maybe we could watch it together. Since Disney bought Henson I'll bet it's in the movie library you can watch in your room if you are staying at one of the hotels here." She said, her voice hopeful and light again. "And yes I'm a bit familiar with Escher's works. But I can't look at them too long. They start to give me a headache after awhile."

"Yeah. We are staying at the Contemporary."

"Ooo, swanky."

"From what I hear once all the kids found out that the Monorail runs through the building they weren't gonna let us stay anywhere else."

"I can see that. They wouldn't have as much fun at most of the other places. There's a few that they would probably enjoy at least as much, but none of them have the Monorail in the building." She said with a grin. "Oh! This room is really interesting. This is the Grand Hall. You see all the place settings and everything down on the table?"

Jake looked at where she was pointing, ignoring the dancing ghosts in the room, and nodded.

"All the dishes, silverware, and everything else are period accurate designs. They're replicas, of course, but all the patterns on the dishes and everything were the height of popularity among the upper class for the time period. Not to mention the clothes all the ghosts are wearing."

"I'll take your word for it," He said with a smirk. "Not even gonna try to see the patterns on the plates from here."

Cassandra giggled.

"You're learning, cowboy." She said with a wink as she snuggled back up into his side.

They sat in silence through the Attic as Jake tried his best to pay more attention to the ride than the redhead in his arms. As they moved out onto the Balcony overlooking the Graveyard she sat up slightly again.

"All the headstones down there have names and dates on them. Even the ones there is no chance you could see from the car. They are all roughly accurate to the characters that they match up with too."

Jake lost the struggle to pay attention to the ride when Cassandra started tracing intricate patterns on the palm of his hand. The next thing he knew she was standing up. He blinked and realized she was exiting the ride. He followed her outside.

"Should I even ask if you are going to tell me yet?" Jake asked with a smirk.

"Nope." Cassandra chirped as she spun on her toes to face him, taking both his hands in hers.

"In that case what is my homework for this time?" He said.

She leaned in until he could feel her breath on his neck.

"When we get to the Library I want you to jump out of our car and steal the Mickey Mouse autobiography off the shelf for me." She whispered to him.

_"What?"_

Cassandra doubled over laughing at the look on Jake's face.

"What?" Jake grumbled.

"I was kidding!" Cassandra finally managed while gasping for breath. "But the look on your face was priceless. Seriously, if you did that you'd get thrown out of the park and I'd get fired. But I'm already risking that for a really cute guy, so whatever."

"Whoa. What? Run that by me again."

"I'm risking getting fired?"

"No, the other part."

"The cute guy part?"

"You think I'm cute?"

"Obviously. I wouldn't risk getting fired for just anyone."

"Wait, why would you get fired?"

"Fraternizing with guests is 'frowned upon' at best. Which is why I'm undercover on my day off." Cassandra gestured to her outfit. "I'm more of a sundress or cute blouse and skirt with leggings kind of princess. But if you get caught while in costume you can get fired on the spot."

"You're kidding me."

"Nope. Jodi told me about one of the Cinderella's that almost got caught making out with a guest about a year before I started. She was just lucky that her supervisor thought the girl she was with was crying on her shoulder instead of giving Cinderella a hickey." Cassandra giggled.

Jake stared at her in shock.

"Well, darlin', that's a whole lot of information to process all at once." Jake finally said.

"Don't worry about it. We still have one trip through the Mansion left. You need to concentrate on that, cowboy." She said with a smile.

"Oh. Yeah. Right. So what do I have to do this time that _doesn't_ involve theft?" He asked causing Cassandra to giggle again.

"Just take it all in this time. The story of the ride and all the details too. The _entire_ experience."

 

* * *

 

They stepped back out into the sun after the ride and Jake whistled.

"That was really impressive." He said looking back at the building.

"That's why this is one of my favorite places here. This ride is a living breathing work of art." She said looking at the building with a smile. She missed Jake's eyes snapping over to her. "It's like everything Disney. Most people don't think of animation as art, but they don't understand what goes into it."

"Oh really?"

"Well for starters, a standard movie projector runs at twenty-four frames per second. Which means in traditional cell animation there are twenty-four hand drawn hand painted cells that must be produced for every single second of film, minimum."

"Wow. That does sound like a lot of work."

"Tell me about it. Like take this as an example." She said as she skipped out in front of him. "If you were to film me right now you would just start rolling the camera."

Cassandra began spinning and dancing in something that resembled ballet. Bending and swopping her arms out to her sides as she spun. She danced for nearly a minute.

"If you were filming that," She said as she skipped back up to him. "It would have just been forty-seven seconds of film. If you were animating it that would have been one thousand one hundred and twenty-eight individual cells. Each done by hand. Not even one full minute and you already need over a thousand paintings. Now think about a full length movie and how many paintings would have to be created. Each one having to fit perfectly with the ones that were being made on either side. Not to mention that doesn't include the background plates, the sky, the buildings, the streets, all the things in the environment that won't move or all the additional layers of cells for things that will move but not interact with the primary elements of the scene."

She turned and swept her arm out around them.

"The trees, the birds, the clouds, all of those people passing by in the background. Everything that would bring the scene to life. Those all have to be drawn and painted by hand as well. Regardless of what anyone says, animation is _art_ and no one will ever convince me otherwise."

Jake stared at her in awe.

"I had never thought about it like that." Jake nearly whispered.

"Oh! Did you get the Fantasia and Fantasia 2000 special edition dvds by any chance?" Cassandra asked.

"No, I didn't. Kinda doubt any of the kids had been born when that came out, so I didn't pay that much attention to what Disney movies were on sale. Why?"

"There's a short film that was included in the special features called Destino. It's based on a collaboration between Disney and Salvador Dali. It's really beautiful." Cassandra said as she checked something her phone. "As a matter of fact they are running the Fantasia double feature this week over at the Disney-plex theater they built over outside the Hollywood Adventure park. It is showing between the two movies. We could go see it. You know, if you'd like to go with me."

She blushed slightly as Jake smiled at her.

"Of course I'd like to go with you. I can't believe I hadn't heard of this before." Jake said. 

Cassandra raised an eyebrow at him. Just then his phone chirped.

"Saved by the bell." He said under his breath as he pulled out his phone.

 

Georgia: _Hey baby bro. U 'sober' yet? M &M want to go on the jungle cruise but not w/o Unca Jacob. U hungry? Thought we could grab lunch after._

 

"It's Georgia. The girls want to go on the Jungle Cruise with me and then grab lunch. You wanna come along?"

"I'd love to!" Cassandra said as she jumped in the air and clapped her hands together.

"The girls are gonna be real excited to see you." Jake said with a smile.

"Oh, I have an idea." She said with a smirk as she put her sunglasses back on and took the hair tie out of her ponytail that was sticking out the back of her cap and slipped it onto her wrist. "Just introduce me as Cassandra. Don't tell them who I am."

"If you say so darlin'." Jake said as he started to type.

 

Jacob: _Sounds good. We're on our way. Meet you at the Cruise?_

Georgia: " _We"?_

 

Jake smirked and slipped his phone back in his pocket. He offered his arm to Cassandra. She slipped her hand into his and intertwined their fingers and they headed off to meet Georgia and the twins.

"So what does the back of your shirt say?" Jake asked. "I could only see part of it with it tied up like it is and you spinning around while you were dancing."

"It says 'I want adventure in the great wide somewhere'. It's kind of my motto. It's from Beauty and the Beast. Belle is tired of being stuck in her little town. She has read all the books in the library and wants to see the world beyond where she lives. If it was set modern day you could say she wants to fill every page of her passport with stamps from the places she has seen. To me it's a reminder that life is short, some shorter than others, and there is no reason to waste any time being miserable if you are able to do something about it. That's how I ended up here. I'd like to see the world, but for now I'm ok with the world coming to me while I save up to travel overseas. So many places I haven't seen yet."

"That's really beautiful. I'd like to as well. I've been to a few places but they've all been for work. If you've seen one oil rig or pipeline project you've pretty much seen em all. And the hours don't leave much time for exploring the "culture" of whatever tiny middle of nowhere town you end up renting a studio apartment in. Mostly sitting in the one bar in town with everybody you work with listening to the jukebox and gripping about work." He said sadly. "Not much different from being back home. I'd like more for all the kids. They really deserve a chance to experience the world beyond the county line. I want to take them over to Epcot sometime this week so they can get even a little taste of that."

"That's really sweet." She said resting her head on his shoulder for a moment. "They're really lucky to have you. Bet you'll make a really great dad one day."

"And I'm sure you'll be a great mother."

"I don't know about that." She said looking down at her feet. She snapped her head back up almost sending her sunglasses flying. "Oh! This is one of my other favorite spots."

Jake looked up at the sudden change of subject to see a well maintained flower garden.

"What about this spot is so special?" Jake asked.

"It smells like 8th grade trigonometry." She said with a wistful sigh.

"You took trig in _junior high_?"

"Like I said, I'm good at math."

"And what exactly does trig _smell_ like?"

"Oh. Uh, yeah, well, like these flowers. I'm…a Synesthete." She said hesitantly.

"I'm a Presbyterian. What does that have to do with math?"

Cassandra laughed and Jake smiled at the sound.

"It's nothing like that. It's my brain. I have Synesthesia." She said still giggling.

"Which means?" Jake asked.

"My senses are cross wired. Numbers are colors. Science is musical notes. When I do math I smell things."

"And trigonometry smells like these flowers?"

"Yes. And 8th grade was just before everything changed." The smile quickly leaving her face. She shook her head before Jake could speak. "But that's not important. The girls are probably waiting for us."

Cassandra pulled at his hand and they headed towards Adventureland. Jake decided not to press her and fell into step beside her again.

 

* * *

 

They rounded the last corner before the entrance to the Jungle Cruise and were greeted by cries of "Unca Jacob!"

The twins ran up to him and wrapped their arms around him.

"You girls realize it's only been like a couple of hours right?" He asked as he hugged them back.

Georgia laughed at the scene.

"So who's your pretty friend?" She asked as Jake untangled himself from the twins.

"Georgia this is Cassandra. Cassandra this is my big sister georgia and her girls." He said glancing at Cassandra. She smirked back at him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Georgia." She said shaking Georgia's hand. She then turned to the twins. "Maggie Sue, Mattie May, have you been enjoying yourselves today in the kingdom?"

The girls looked at Cassandra in shock. Then they looked at Jake.

"Did you tell her our names?" Maggie asked.

"Nope." Jake held up his hands innocently. "Wasn't me."

"Then how did you know?" Mattie asked Cassandra.

"Magic." Cassandra said as she pulled off her cap and shook out her hair. She then slipped off her sunglasses and smiled at the girls.

"ARIEL!" They both shrieked and jumped to hug her.

"Way to go Prince Charming." Georgia said as she elbowed Jake in the side.

Jake grumbled at her then went back to smiling at the girls and Cassandra.

 

* * *

 

The girls had been grilling Cassandra about all things Disney that they could think of the entire time they had stood in line. Fortunately they had quieted down once they had piled onto the boat. They all laughed at the bad puns built into the tour guide's monologue. Shouted out answers when they were called for. When they got to the hippos the look on Cassandra's face told Jake the tour guide had gone off script.

"Don't worry folks. I can scare them off with this gun." The tour guide rattled of his script and pulled the trigger but nothing happened. "Oh Shhhhiiiiioooooot. Um plan B."

He quickly pulled a candy bar out of his pocket and unwrapped it. He broke off a few pieces and threw them into the water.

"It's ok folks. We're safe now. Hippos like chocolate." He said as he took a quick bite before tucking it back into his shirt pocket. The rest of the ride went without incident.

"Anybody else ready for some lunch?" Georgia asked once they got off the ride.

"ME!" Both the twins shouted.

"I could eat." Jake chimed in. "Cassandra?"

"Sure. Let's go." Cassandra said with a smile as she looped her arm through his.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had originally thought each day was going to be a chapter. Then these two dorks got together and blew that plan out of the water. 
> 
> I want to thank justlook3 again, this time for Georgia's name (and the rest of Jake's sisters names who Cassie will hear about in the next chapter over lunch) from her story And the Wedding Date - http://archiveofourown.org/works/4464533
> 
> Hopefully the rest of tuesday won't take nearly as long to write.


	3. Tuesday Afternoon

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided as I was writing this chapter that this takes place during Season 1 of AoS.

“Hey Ariel?” Mattie asked after everyone had gotten their food and sat down.

Cassandra's head shot up, her eyes wide as she looked around. She gestured to the girls as she leaned in as if she was going to tell them a secret.

“Shhh! When I'm dressed like this you have to call me Cassandra. I'm undercover.” She said in a stage whisper. “You remember what Usula's magic can do?”

The girls both nodded.

“She gave you legs and stole your voice.” Mattie answered.

“Yes she did. But that's not all she did with her magic.” Cassandra said.

“Yeah! She turned her big ugly octopus self into a pretty girl.” Maggie almost shouted.

“That's right.” Cassandra said with a smile. “And if she can do that to her big octopus body she can make _anybody_ look like a person.”

The twins gasped.

“In fact,” Cassandra said as her eyes darted back and forth between them. “You two are twins. You could be Ursula's eels Flotsam and Jetsam!”

“No!” They both shrieked.

“Don't worry.” Cassandra laughed. “I know you aren't. Jake wouldn't put me in danger like that.”

Georgia raised an eyebrow at her brother when she heard him referred to as 'Jake'. He didn't notice that, or the chuckle when she saw the big goofy grin on his face as he watched the redhead.

“But we have to be careful.” Cassandra continued. “With magic like that you never know who might be one of Ursula's minions. Like that big guy over there could be a Great White Shark easily.”

The girls gasped again.

“That's why we can't let them hear you call me Ariel. You have to call me Cassandra.” She said with a wink. “Got it?”

“Got it!” The girls replied.

 

“Cassandra?” Maggie asked as she picked up a fry a couple of minutes later.

“Yes Maggie?”

“Well, you know my real name is Margret and Mattie's real name is Mathilda...” Maggie trailed off.

“Yes I remember. You told me yesterday.”

“Um, I was just wondering...” Maggie trailed off again obviously unsure if she should finish what she was saying.

“What were you wondering?” Cassandra prompted.

“Um, do you think, uh, maybe, if it would be ok, could we, like, call you Cassie?” Maggie finally finished speaking to her food instead of Cassandra. After several moments of silence Maggie looked up. Everyone at the table was looking at the redhead who had tears threatening to spill down her smiling face. “Cassandra? Are you ok?”

“Yes. Yes, I'm ok. Of course you can call me Cassie.” She said.

“Then why are you about to cry?” Mattie asked.

“Because I've never had a nickname before. I love it!” Cassandra said as she leaned over to wrap Maggie in a tight hug.

Georgia slipped out her phone and snapped a picture of the scene.

“Cassie?” Mattie asked.

“Yes Mattie?” Cassandra looked up.

“Do you actually watch Agents of Shield?” Mattie gestured to Cassie's cap.

“Yes! I do!” Cassie replied as a smile spread across her face again. “I think a bunch of ordinary people fighting against people with superpowers and everything trying to make the world safe is a really great story.”

“Who's your favorite character? I like Skye. It's cool how she's a girl and a super hacker. I'd love to be able to do all that stuff with computers.” Maggie said.

“I really like FitzSimmons. They make a really great team and they are really good at math and science, like me.” Cassie said with a smile. “And I think it's really adorable how much they are in love with each other but haven't figured it out yet. How about you Mattie?”

“I think Agent May is the coolest. I like how she can kick everybody's butt.” Mattie said as she threw a few karate chops and punches at the air. Cassie giggled at the move.

“ _Mattie._ Language.” Georgia tried for a stern motherly tone but couldn't suppress her laugh brought on by her daughter's enthusiastic antics.

“Sorry, Mama.” Mattie said trying not to grin.

“No doubt she's a Stone.” Jake chuckled.

“Oh! That reminds me.” Cassie bounced in her seat. “Jake said the whole family is here on this trip.”

“Yup.” Georgia said. “The whole gaggle of us.”

“That is so sweet. It sounds like so much fun.” Cassie said. “I never had any of that growing up.”

“Try saying that after sharing one bathroom with four sisters.” Jake mock groaned.

“But being the only boy _you_ got your own room.” Georgia shot back at him with grin. Cassie giggled at them then sighed happily.

“Somehow I think I would have liked all of that.” Cassie said. “Both my parents were only children too, so I didn't even have cousins either.”

“Damn.” Georgia said.

“ _Mama._ ” Mattie said in her sternest voice, pointing a finger and her mother. “Language.”

Jake erupted with laughter. Georgia and Cassie quickly joined in. Followed by the twins a moment later.

“Excuse me.” Georgia finally managed. “ _Dang._ ”

“Much better.” Mattie said with a nod and a smirk.

“So how many is a 'gaggle' exactly?” Cassie asked with a giggle.

“Oh boy. That's a lot.” Georgia said. “There's our folks, Isaac and Isabelle. Then me, my husband Greg, the twins and our youngest Mikey.”

“Quite the alliterative family.” Cassie said.

“You haven't heard the half of it.” Jake said.

“Oh yeah.” Georgia said. “Next is Joyce and her husband Jeff. Their son Robbie and their daughter Riley. Then there's _Jake_.”

Georgia shot him a look and chuckled at the color that jumped to his cheeks.

“Then Jennifer and her husband Daniel, who are expecting their third child, a girl. They have a son, Peter, and a daughter, Piper.”

“Oh my god!” Cassie exclaimed as she started laughing. “Please tell me they don't plan on naming the next girl Pepper!”

Both Georgia and Jake looked at Cassie, obviously confused.

“Peter Piper picked a peck...” Cassie let the line hang.

“Of pickled peppers!” Jake, Georgia and the twins all finished.

“How did we never figure that out?” Jake laughed.

“Oh we are going to _have_ to give them so much grief over that!” Georgia added.

“I hope this isn't going to cause trouble.” Cassie said, suddenly worried.

“Don't worry darlin'.” Jake said, the affectionate term earning another eyebrow raise from Georgia. “Just some good natured teasing between siblings.”

“If you say so.” Cassie said skeptically. “By my count that's only three sisters.”

“Yeah. Jessica is the baby. She's here with her boyfrie-I mean fiancé, Alex.” Georgia said. “We've all been joking that if he survives a family vacation with all of us then there's nothing that will break them up.”

“Trial by fire.” Cassie laughed. “When is the wedding?”

“In the spring!” Maggie chimed in. “Mattie and me get to be the flower girls.”

“We're having it in our back yard!” Mattie added. “And the dance afterwards is going to be in our barn.”

“That sounds really sweet.” Cassie sighed.

“That's the plan.” Georgia said.

“Do Jessica and Alex plan on continuing the alliterative baby naming tradition?” Cassie asked.

“Haven't asked, but I wouldn't be surprised.” Georgia said. “Funny thing is it's never really been planned. We all kinda did it by accident.”

“Yeah. Flynn would like you.” Cassie chuckled.

“Flynn?” Georgia asked.

“A friend of mine. I worked with him for a few months when I lived in New York. He has a thing for alliteration. And most of the time he didn't even realize it until he finished speaking.” Cassie giggled. “But considering we were working at the Metropolitan Library it shouldn't be too shocking that he had a way with words.”

“You worked at the Met?” Jake whistled. “They've got a hell of a collection of-” Jake cut himself off and glanced quickly at his sister. “So what did you and Flynn do there?”

“Well I mostly just re-shelved books. But sometimes I would help Flynn after my shift or if it was a slow day.” Cassie said. “He was in charge of the rare items collection. Mostly things that are too delicate and fragile to be available to the public. But there are also other things he keeps watch over. It's almost like a museum in there. Loads of items that either can't be verified as authentic or they aren't “special” enough to be in a museum or some such nonsense like that.”

“Sounds interesting” Georgia said. Cassie noticed Jake very slightly nod and smile in agreement.

“It really was. Between the books and everything in Flynn's annex I got to explore all sorts of cultures from all over the world.” Cassie said. “I get something similar working here. I get to meet people coming here from all over the world and I get to hear little bits of their stories. Someday I hope to get the chance to go explore the world out there and see it all for myself.”

“Ya know,” Georgia said as a sly smile spread across her face. “Jake was saying something kinda like that this morning. He wanted to take the kids over to Epcot one day so they get a little taste of the world, even if it is prepackaged and everything.”

“Oh was he?” Cassie said mirroring her smile.

“Yeah. Sounds like you and my baby brother might have a little more in common than just a certain redheaded mermaid.” Georgia said.

Jake momentarily forgot that he had mentioned the Epcot excursion to Cassie earlier as he was too busy trying to keep from blushing.

“Let this be a lesson girls.” He said to the twins. “No matter how old you are you will never be too old for your family to stop picking on you.”

All four of the women at the table laughed.

 

Just as they were finishing their lunch Georgia's phone chimed. She read the text and smiled.

“Greg says all the kids want to go on the Buzz Lightyear ride. But all the grownups are taking their time eating lunch. He's willing to take them if we'd be willing to meet up and help corral them all.” She said.

“Please, Uncle Jacob?” The twins said in stereo.

“That one is actually pretty fun.” Cassie said to him. Then with a smirk, “It's no Teacups, but I think you'll enjoy it.”

Jake groaned involuntarily, bringing on another round of laughter.

“Ok. But only if you come too Cass.” Jake said with a smile. “Even things out a little bit. Four of us, seven of them.”

“Deal!” Cassie said lightly blushing at her newest nickname.

“Yay!” The twins cheered as they jumped up to throw away their trash.

“So,” Cassie said with a smirk. “We have a redheaded mermaid in common do we?”

“I am so gonna kill her.” Jake grumbled.

“Oh this sounds like a story I want to hear.” Cassie giggled. “That Prince Eric pull yesterday did seem a tad easy.”

“Fine.” Jake sighed. He watched the twins pulling Georgia along ahead of them. “When I had my first kiss the song 'Kiss the Girl' was playing.”

Cassie broke down laughing.

“Oh come on.” Jake said. “That song was like Barry White for twelve year olds.”

Cassie doubled over laughing even harder.

“It's not that funny.” Jake groaned.

“It's not.” Cassie said trying to catch her breath. “Well the Barry White thing is kinda hilarious. It was just a really funny coincidence.”

“Really?” Jake said cocking an eyebrow at the redhead.

“Yeah.” Cassie said with a bit of a blush. “My first kiss was to a Disney song too.”

“Which one?” Jake asked seeing the humor.

“It was 'A Whole New World' from Aladdin.” Cassie said. “It's was no Barry White but it managed to set the mood.”

“Ok. Yeah. That is an entertaining coincidence.” Jake chuckled. “Spin the bottle or seven minutes in heaven?”

“Neither actually.” Cassie said. “Cute boy all the girls had a crush on leaned over and kissed me.”

“Lucky him.” Jake said causing Cassie to blush fully.

“Come on slowpokes!” The twins shouted as they ran up to Jake and Cassie. “We've got rides to go on and you need to hurry up.”

“Alright!” Cassie giggled as the twins started to tug them along.

 

They arrived at the Buzz Lightyear ride to a chorus of kids cheering for Jake, Georgia and the twins. The twins bolted to give their dad a hug. Once they released him and ran to join their cousins in line he spotted Cassie.

“Did I get another sister-in-law when I wasn't looking?” Greg asked Georgia.

“Not yet.” Georgia laughed as she shot Jake a knowing look. Both Jake and Cassie blushed and looked away from each other.

“So what's the deal with this ride?” Jake said, changing the subject.

“It's like a video game.” Cassie said, equally relived for the subject change. “Each car has a pair of laser blasters. You use them to shoot the alien hordes. It's surprisingly fun.”

“Doesn't sound too bad.” Jake said.

“It keeps score too.” Cassie smirked as both Jake and Georgia perked up.

“Oh really?” They both said in unison.

“There are two things I have learned that never fail to inspire people in this place.” Cassie laughed. “Disney magic, and good old fashion sibling rivalry.”

 

After a string of challenges between siblings and cousins on who was going to score the highest they all piled onto the ride. Georgia and Greg took the first car and Jake and Cassie took the last car to bookend all the kids.

“Ok cowboy,” Cassie grinned at Jake as their car slipped into the blacklight extravaganza. “Let see if you're a gunslinger.”

“Guess we will see.” Jake shot her a wink and started blasting away. The ride reminded him of the ubiquitous 'moonlight bowling' that was the all ages entertainment highlight of nearly every town he had ever worked in. The children's laughter and the arcade like sound effects only served to reinforce that impression. He glanced down and noticed Cassie was already a thousand points ahead of him. Jake redoubled his efforts, which caught Cassie's attention. She laughed which only served to further distract Jake from where he was shooting. He kept glancing at the redhead while she laughed and threw herself into enjoying the ride.

She felt his eyes on her. She watched him out of the corner of her eye, waiting until he turned back to blasting aliens before she looked at him. He had a look of relaxed concentration on his face, which should have made no sense, but on Jake it worked. He laughed as he blasted an exceptionally difficult target just before they slipped through the opening marked “Emergency Escape Hatch” and into the darkness of the warp tunnel. Cassie reached out, placed her hand on Jake's cheek and turned him to face her.

Their lips met in the darkness. She felt him almost flinch with surprise before he relaxed. She felt one of his hand find her hip, in response she slipped her hand from his cheek and into his hair. He slid his arm around her and pulled her across the hard plastic bench against him. She moaned against his lips. She was rewarded with his tongue flicking lightly across her own lips. She pulled him closer as her tongue slipped into his mouth. Cassie couldn't tell if the colors flashing across the backs of her eyelids were from the ride or from her own mind as Jake's fingers tangled in her hair. She felt, more than heard, him moan as his hand travelled up her back.

“Yo! Prince Charming! Ride's over!” They jumped apart at the sound of Georgia's voice.

They both looked around and realized that the ride was in fact over and they needed to evacuate their car. They quickly scrambled to get up. They stood on the platform, both blushing, as Georgia and Greg corralled the kids.

“Unca Jacob! What was your score?” Maggie shouted as she ran up to them.

“Oh he scored alrig-oof!” Greg was cut off by an elbow to the ribs from Georgia.

Cassie started to giggle.

“Why don't you give your parents a hand getting everybody outside?” Cassie said to Maggie. “Then we can go on more rides.”

“Ok!” Maggie cheered.

On the way out Cassie stopped by the Ride Photo Kiosk and bought two copies of the picture of her and Jake totally oblivious to the rest of the world.

“Now not that I mind darlin'. Because I don't, not even one little bit.” Jake said as they waited for the photos to print. “But what was that all about?”

Cassie sighed heavily.

“Um...I guess you could say that I have a bunch of 'what if's' in my life. Way too many in fact, and I don't have any control over them.” She said. “I didn't want you to be one that I _did_ have control over but let slip by. It just felt important.”

Jake gently took her hand and raised it to his lips. He placed a light kiss on her knuckles.

“That is something I can certainly relate to.” He said sadly as he wrapped his arms around her. “More than you know.”

 

A few minutes later Jake and Cassie walked out into the sunlight, fingers intertwined.

“Finally.” Georgia called. “Thought you two had snuck back in line to take another ride on the Tunnel of Love.”

Cassie giggled as Jake started to blush again.

“C'mon. The twins have convinced everybody to go ride the carousel. Not that I mind another trip.” Georgia chuckled.

“Oh. Yay!” Cassie cheered. “I love the carousel.”

“And I just talked to Jen. She says the grown ups wouldn't mind some more down time without the rugrats.” Georgia said as they started walking.

“Nothin' like family to use as built in babysitters.” Jake chuckled.

“Well I'm having fun.” Cassie grinned. “I usually only get a couple of minutes with the kids while we are getting ready for pictures. Then they are on their way and I start over with a new bunch of kids. Oh! That reminds me, Jake can I see the picture we took yesterday with the twins?”

“Oh yeah. I haven't seen that pic either.” Georgia chimed in.

“Yeah, sure.” Jake said fishing his phone out of his pocket. He pulled up the picture and handed it to Cassie.

“Oh my goodness! This is adorable.” Cassie gasped. “I usually don't get to see the pictures I pose for. Do you mind if I keep a copy?”

“Fine by me.” Jake said glancing at Georgia.

“Only if you let me see it first.” Georgie laughed.

“Deal.” Cassie giggled handing over the phone.

“Wow. This is a cute picture.” Georgia said. “And if I didn't know better I'd say the four of you made a cute family.”

Jake and Cassie both blushed. Cassie took back the phone. She typed quickly then handed the phone back to Jake.

“Now you have my number.” Cassie smiled. “And I have yours.”

“Ok _that_ was smooth.” Jake chuckled.

“Thank you.” Cassie curtsied and giggled. She straightened back up and noticed where they were. “I'll be right back. I need to go talk to Jodi for a minute. Save me a place in line. I don't want to miss the ride.”

“No problem.” Georgia said. “Looks like we have more than a few minutes to wait in line.”

“I'll make it quick.” Cassie called as she dashed off.

Jake smiled as he watched her leave, a fact not missed by Georgia. She simply chuckled at her brother.

“She seems nice.” Georgie snickered.

Jake rolled his eyes.

“You two seems to be getting along quite well.” She continued.

“Oh shut up.” Jake grumbled.

“Lighten up.” She nudged him. “I like her. And It's pretty obvious you do to.”

“And after Friday I'll never see her again.” He said.

“You do realize it's the 21st Century right? E-mail? Skype? Cell phones? Airplanes?” She said as she crossed her arms. “This isn't the days of the Pony Express.”

“None of that matters.” Jake grumbled.

“And just why is that?” She said her patience with her little brothers stubbornness starting to wear thin already.

“You heard her. She worked at the Metropolitan Public Library in _New York._ She wants to _travel the world_. What is she going to want with some dumb redneck oil rigger like me?” He said to his feet.

“Maybe you should ask her that. Because it's already pretty obvious she likes you too.” She said. “Besides, in case you forgot, just this morning you were saying some things that sounded a bit like maybe you want to see the world too.”

Jake opened his mouth to object. Then realized she was right.

“And I know you aren't nearly the 'dumb redneck oil rigger' you show the world. I'm not Dad.” She said. “Just maybe _that's_ the guy she likes. So stop doubting yourself and give her a chance.”

“Maybe.” Jake shrugged.

“Maybe nothing. From the looks of things she came looking for you in this giant theme park after meeting you for all of five minutes yesterday.” Georgia flicked him in the forehead. “She's spent the whole day with you so far. The girls adore her and she adores them.”

“I guess.” Jake said starting to smile a bit.

“Seriously, how many people do you know that would spend their entire day off hanging around at work with all of these kids that she doesn't know if she didn't think you were worth it?” She cocked and eyebrow at him. “Yeah she works a job dealing with kids all day, but she says 'Hi', does her little Ariel spiel, takes a picture and sends them on their way. But here she is hanging with all of us.”

Jake looked at his sister, still a bit skeptical.

“And believe it or not, every relationship has a 'never have to see them again after' moment if you let it. Greg and I didn't have to ever see each other again after we graduated if we had let it happen. But we didn't and now look at us. Married fifteen years with three beautiful kids.” She said. “Letting that 'never see them again' moment happen is easy. But you might be missing out on something wonderful.”

“Well I do have a few days to screw it up on my own if she is actually interested.” Jake smirked.

“Jerk.” Georgia swatted him on the arm just as Cassie came skipping up to them.

“Uh oh.” Cassie chuckled. “What did he do to annoy big sis?”

“Just being a bratty baby brother.” Jake said as he wrapped his arms around the redhead.

“And this is different from every single day growing up how exactly?” Georgia laughed.

“You tell me.” Jake grinned.

Cassie laughed, kissed Jake on the cheek, then spun around in his arms so she could lean against him.

“You guys are so lucky.” Cassie said. “I would have given anything to have brothers or sisters or cousins or anything.”

“Well you can borrow us for as long as you can hang out with us.” Georgia said smiling and shooting Jake a look.

“Sounds perfect.” Cassie smiled.

“Cassie!” Maggie and Mattie shouted as the ran up to her. “Can we ride next to you and Unca Jacob?”

“Sure! As long as we can find enough horses together.” Cassie smiled down at them.

“Yay!” The twins cheered as they hugged Cassie.

“Do you know the one thing about this ride that makes me just a little bit sad?” Cassie asked the girls.

“No.” Mattie said.

“What is it?” Maggie asked.

“For all the magic that got used in Cinderella, there isn't a single unicorn in the movie or on the carousel.” Cassie said.

“Aw!” The girls both cried.

Jake gave Cassie a light squeeze. Georgia saw the movement, and watched Cassie smile in response.

 

“Mama?” Maggie said after the ride. “Can Cassie have dinner with us?”

“I don't see why not.” Georgia said shooting a look at Cassie and Jake snuggling up to each other at the back of the pack of kids pouring off the carousel. “Why don't you and your sister go ask her once we get out of this crowd.”

“Cassie!” The twins shouted, jumping up and down and waving their arms.

“I'm coming!” She called back.

The twins kept jumping around waiting for Cassie and Jake to get to them.

“What? Were you afraid I was going to wander off with some other family?” Cassie laughed once they finally reached the girls.

“Noooo.” The twins giggled.

“We wanted to ask if you wanted to have dinner with us tonight.” Maggie said.

“The whole family.” Mattie finished.

“Oh. I wish I could.” Cassie said. “But I have to get home early tonight.”

“Aw man!” Maggie said.

“I'm cat sitting for my friend Lamia. Her cat Lancelot is...a picky eater, and I gave him the last can of food this morning before I left.” Cassie said. “And the only store that sells the only kind of food he will eat closes pretty early. Lamia had to leave town on short notice so she didn't have time to stock up before she left. Then in the shuffle of getting her to the airport and everything I forgot to see how much food he had.”

“That bites.” Mattie said.

“No kidding.” Jake said.

_“Mattie!”_ Georgia snapped.

“Sorry Mama.” Mattie said sheepishly.

“But I am free tomorrow night.” Cassie smiled as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. “And if it's ok with your mom and the rest of your family I have an idea where we could eat.”

“Oh really?” Georgia grinned. “Where's that?”

“The Sci-Fi Diner” Cassie said handing over her phone. “It's set up like a drive in movie theater. All the tables look like 50's cars and they run clips from old sci-fi movies. It's really fun. I think that everybody would enjoy it.”

“That does look fun.” Jake said looking over Georgia's shoulder at the screen.

“Give me a minute and I'll see if the rest of the gaggle like the look of the place.” Georgia said, pulling out her own cell phone and dialing.

“Any of the tables look like Greased Lightning?” Jake said to Cassie after Georgia stepped a couple feet away. Cassie gave him a confused look. “Let me guess. You haven't seen Grease yet either?”

“Nope.” She said with a small shrug.

“We have so much work to do.” Jake chuckled.

“Everybody likes the look of it.” Georgia said.

“Great!” Cassie clapped. “I'll take care of it.”

“Yay!” The twins cheered as Cassie dialed.

“Hi, Beth? Yeah it's Cassandra. Oh good. Better than I expected actually.” Cassie said into her phone as she glanced at Jake. “How is seating for tomorrow night looking? Excellent! Can you put me down for reservations under the name Stone at eight o'clock for nineteen? Yes, nineteen. Great! Are you working tomorrow night? Then I'll see you then. Love you. Bye!”

“Sounds like that went well.” Georgia said.

“Yup! All set for tomorrow night.” Cassie said. “Plus since I'm going to be with you I can use my employee discount for the whole check.”

“Dad will certainly like that.” Jake said under his breath.

“What?” Cassie turned to Jake.

“Oh, uh, just starting to think you might actually have magic powers.” Jake grinned.

“You better bippity boppity believe it.” Cassie giggled as she wiggled her fingers at him.

Jake laughed the most genuine laugh Georgia had heard out of him around a pretty girl in years. She smirked at him.

“Cassie?” Mattie said.

“Yes Mattie?” Cassie said.

“Do you have to leave right away?” Mattie asked quietly. “Or do you have time to go on any more rides with us?”

“Yes I've got some more time.” Cassie smiled. “What ride do you want to go on next?”

“I dunno.” Mattie shrugged. “What's you're favorite?”

Jake laughed again. Cassie giggled at him.

“The Haunted Mansion.” Cassie said. “Have you guys been on that one yet?”

“Not yet.” Maggie joined the conversation. “It sounds spooky.”

“It can be.” Cassie said. “But Jake and I and your parents won't let anything happen to you if you want to go on that one.”

“Promise?” The twins both said.

“Pinky swear.” Cassie smiled holding out her little finger.

The three of them pinky swore and then the twins ran off to tell the rest of the kids where they were headed next.

“You sure you have enough time to ride it three more times?” Jake chuckled.

“Nope.” Cassie giggled. “Besides I'm not sure if any of the kids are quite old enough to really appreciate all the little details like you and I do. Plus I'd have to ride it way more than three times to be able to point everything out to all of them. I'd be here for days.”

“Well we don't leave until Saturday.” Jake laughed.

“Good to know, cowboy.” Cassie giggled. “We better get going before the girls come back for us.”

 

“That was _SO FUN!”_ Maggie screamed once they got out of the Mansion. “Can we go again?”

“You'll have to ask your folks, Maggie.” Cassie smiled. “I have to get going.”

“Aw man.” Mattie moaned.

“Well if you aren't tired of me yet I could come hang out with you tomorrow.” Cassie giggled.

“No!” Both the twins cried.

“Oh, ok. I guess I won't come then.” Cassie tried not to smile.

“No!” The twins shouted. “We meant we aren't tired of you. We _do_ want to you come back tomorrow.”

“Oooooooh. If you insist.” Cassie smirked.

“We do!” Maggie nodded.

“Yeah!” Mattie said.

“Ok.” Cassie said dropping down to her knees to hug the twins. “Then I'll see you tomorrow. Unca Jacob has my number so we can figure out where to meet up.”

“Yay!” The twins cheered as they threw their arms around Cassie. Once they let go they dashed for their parents to beg to go back into the Mansion.

“So, are you that excited to see me tomorrow cowboy?” Cassie smirked at Jake.

“Maybe.” Jake smirked back.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a kiss. His hands found her hips and he pulled her close. After a few moments Cassie pulled away.

“How about now?” She whispered with a mischievous grin.

“Oh I don't think the twins are old enough to be the kind of excited I am now.” Jake said with a chuckle.

Cassie giggled and blushed.

“Oh! If you still want to see it the Fantasia double feature has a showing tomorrow morning.” She said. “I thought maybe we could go see that and then meet everybody else for lunch over at Epcot. Then we can spend the rest of the day there taking the kids around the world.”

“That sounds perfect.” Jake smiled.

“Great. How about we meet outside the theater at 9:30?” She said. “That will give us plenty of time to get popcorn and everything before the movie starts at ten.”

“It's a date.” Jake said slipping his hands from her hips around to the small of her back. Cassie sighed happily and smiled.

“That it is.” She said as she leaned in and kissed him one more time. “And as much as I would like to stay right on this spot and keep doing this, I need to get going before that unholy terror of a cat starts destroying my apartment because he hasn't been fed.”

“'Picky eater' huh?” Jake chuckled.

“Yeah. He's a first class pain. Lamia is the only person he seems to like and even with her he can be a cranky lil jerk. Anybody else, like me for instance, he will be nice to you only when he wants something from you. Then if you take too long figuring out what it is he wants, or reacting to him being momentarily nice, he turns into a ball of fangs and claws.” She said.

“I guess I should really let you go then.” Jake said pulling Cassie in for another kiss.

“Yeah, you probably should.” Cassie said then pulling him into a kiss of her own.

“Then why is it that you're still standing here?” Jake chuckled before kissing her again.

“Because we both know that I'd rather be here than dealing with that fluffy little jerk?” Cassie giggled then kissed Jake one more time before sighing. “But as much as I would rather stay here, my security deposit thinks otherwise.”

“Yeah you should get going.” Jake sighed. After a few moments he glanced at her arms that were still wrapped around his neck. He smiled. “This isn't going.”

“No. It isn't.” Cassie giggled. She leaned in, kissed him, then untangled her arms. “Ok. Really going this time.”

She took half a step back. Jake's hand slipped from her back to her hips again. She ran her hands down his arms until she found his hands in hers. He lifted her hands and kissed her knuckles.

“I'll see you at 9:30 cowboy.” Cassie smiled.

“Lookin' forward to it darlin'.” Jake said. “Now go save your apartment.”

“Will do.” Cassie giggled then skipped away.

Jake watched her leave with a smile on his face. Once she was out of sight his phone text notification chirped. He pulled it out of his pocket to see a message from Georgia. He opened it and found a picture of himself and Cassandra with their arms around each other smiling with the Haunted Mansion in the background. The message below the picture read “Good job Prince Charming. ;)”. He looked up and spotted Georgia grinning at him. He glanced around to make sure none of the kids were looking his way. Then grinned back and her and gave her the finger. She laughed.

“Hurry up.” She called.

“The park isn't going anywhere.” He said as he walked over to her.

“The kids have unanimously decided they want to go on Splash Mountain now.” She smiled at him and ruffled his hair. “And it would probably make a decent substitute for a cold shower.”

“Oh shut up.” He groaned swatting away her hand.

 


	4. Wednesday Morning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gonna be some angst in this one. Just a heads up.

That morning Jake distractedly hurried through his breakfast. Glancing at the time on his phone roughly every two minutes.

“What's the rush?” Georgia asked between bites. “Hot date?”

“As a matter of fact, yes.” Jake smirked as Georgia momentarily choked on her eggs at his bluntness.

“Oh really?” She finally managed.

“Meeting Cassie for a movie.” Jake nodded. “Afterwards we thought we could meet you guys for lunch over in Epcot. Then take the kids around and give them a glimpse of the rest of the world.”

“When's the movie over?” She asked.

“I'm not sure exactly. It's a double feature.” Jake shrugged. “Figured I could text you when we get out. It'll give the kids the morning to go on rides and stuff. Then it'd probably take us all about the same amount of time to get over to Epcot. We can figure out where to eat when we get there.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Georgia said. “Tell her I say hi.”

“Will do.” Jake said stabbing his last bite of pancakes with his fork. He finished his food, stopped by to give the twins a hug, then headed for the monorail platform.

Georgia smiled watching him. He seemed more relaxed and happy than she had seen him in a very long time. Especially around their father. Being the only Stone boy by blood Jacob had always had certain expectations placed on him. None of them ever really sat well with him. But he had always tried his best to be the son Georgia knew their father expected Jacob to be. Once Jacob had gone to work for their father, ostensibly to one day take over when Isaac retired, those expectations steadily grew. The more Jacob learned and the harder he worked the less satisfied their father was with his efforts. As the years wore on Jacob chaffed under Isaac's abuse. Eventually Jacob had proposed that he go work with other crews on other jobs, outside of Isaac's 'territory' so Jake wouldn't be working for the competition, as a way to keep up with the latest techniques. Georgia had seen it for what it really was. A means of escape, even if only for a handful of months at a time. Each subsequent job Jacob left for was longer than the last, until three years ago when he had stopped coming back to Oklahoma between jobs. A year on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, then a year on a rig in the Gulf of Mexico, and now he was working a site somewhere in Texas. He kept in touch with his sisters and their mother, but Jacob and Isaac had barely spoken a word in those three years. Until this trip. Away from home and away from all things work related they had something of an unspoken truce. They talked sports, they talked bar fights, they talked about how all the kids were doing in school. But they greatly avoided anything that would spark another fight. Neither of them wanted to ruin the trip for the rest of the family.

Georgia wasn't sure if the Stone men would ever see eye to eye. They both had the Stone stubborn streak (as did she and the rest of the girls). Isaac expected people to adapt to his world, not the other way around. Jacob had tried, no matter how much their father changed what he expected from his son, until finally he couldn't do it any more. Georgia knew there was more to Jacob than the man he showed to the world, but she honestly didn't know how much more. She just knew it was there, and that man was not cut out to be Isaac Stone 2.0. She wanted her baby brother to be happy. She wanted him to find the real man behind the mask. Today was the first time in nearly Jacob's entire life that Georgia thought he might have that chance.

 

* * *

 

Jake had been waiting outside the theater for nearly twenty minutes when a slender pair of hands covered his eyes.

“Guess who.” The voice came from behind him.

“Look, Cinderella, I told you I have a date with Ariel this morning.” Jake grinned. “If she catches you here we will both be in trouble and I really don't want to have to deal with her dad and his big magic fork.”

“It's called a trident you dork.” Cassie giggled as she kissed him on the cheek. “And if you were cheating on me with one of the other princesses you wouldn't have to worry about daddy. Ariel can kick ass all on her own.”

“And what about Cassie?” Jake smiled as he wrapped his arms around her.

“She's even more of a badass than Ariel is.” She winked.

“Then it's a good thing I'll never have to find out.” Jake chuckled.

“Oh really?” Cassie smirked.

“Yup.” Jake nodded. “I've never cheated and never will.”

“I had a feeling you were a good man.” Cassie smiled and kissed him.

“I'd like to think so.” Jake shrugged. “But I've really never thought that was something you could decide about yourself. You can only try to do good with your life, but the determination if you succeed is left up to history. Or at least the people around you.”

“That's a very interesting point of view.” Cassie said.

“Think about it. Pretty much everybody thinks they are a good person, or at least one of the good guys based on their own perception of right and wrong. Even the bad guys.” Jake said. “Look at fiction. Lex Luthor is sure that Superman is a threat to the human race. Either he is an advance scout for an invasion force, or he will eventually use his powers to enslave the human race, or any one of a hundred other reasons that Lex sees himself as the hero in the story.”

“I hadn't thought of it that way.” Cassie murmured.

“Or Hydra.” Jake nodded at Cassie's Shield cap. “They think of themselves as bringing order to the chaos of the world that exists under so many different constantly clashing governments.”

Cassie nodded thoughtfully.

“Or how about Professor Moriarty from Sherlock Holmes.” Jake said. “Granted he does have certain signs of being a sociopath, much like Holmes himself, but given the socioeconomic realities of the Victorian Era it could be argued that he might have seen himself as some sort of Robin Hood figure. He never took part in any of the crimes but he did mastermind them. All of his pawns would have been individuals that lived outside acceptable societal norms of the time and therefore would not have held steady employment.”

“Huh. Never heard that take on him before.” Cassie said.

“Heck even the Bible.” Jake said.

“Oh this should be interesting.” Cassie said.

“Lucifer. He was an angel at first.” Jake said. “God first created angels, but he did not give them free will. Then later He created humans and gifted them with free will. However He did not give Adam and Eve the intellectual faculties needed to exercise that free will, nor a world inside the Garden of Eden where it was even needed. What is the point of free will if you don't even know you have it? Is it truly free will if you live in a world where your every need is provided for before you realize it? It could be argued that Lucifer was freeing humans from the same shackles of servitude that the angels were bound by.”

“Wow.” Cassie whistled. “That is certainly a far more philosophical answer than I was expecting to the question 'are you cheating on me with a cartoon character'.” She giggled.

Jake laughed and put his arms around her. “I guess it was. Can't help myself, you're just so easy to talk to. Not sure what's going to come out of my mouth around you.”

Cassie leaned in and kissed him properly. “Yummy. Tastes like somebody had pancakes for breakfast.” She said as she wiped the corner of his mouth with a finger and then popped it into her mouth.

Jake was mesmerized by the sight, until she giggled and blushed under his stare. Jake shook his head and glanced down reflexively. If she hadn't been pressed up against him he would have been staring at his feet. Instead he ended up staring down at red hair cascading over royal blue.

“Sorry.” He mumbled. “So what is your disguise today?”

Cassie stepped back revealing a form fitting royal blue baseball jersey with a stylized letter P in white on the front. She spun around to show off the large number 2 and the name “Chappell” in block letters on the back.

“Nice jersey. Don't recognize the logo though.” Jake said.

“The Palmerston Beavers.” Cassie said as she spun back around. “They're a minor league team outside Boston.”

“Cool. Wouldn't have thought a triple A team would put the money into producing women's cut jerseys.” Jake shrugged.

“Oh they didn't. I altered it myself.” Cassie spun again.

“Very nice.” Jake whistled. “So is this Chappell guy any good?”

“Yeah. Heck of a hitter.” Cassie said. “Pretty cute too.”

“Should I be jealous?” Jake chuckled.

“Only as much as I am of Cinderella.” Cassie giggled. “Never got to meet him. Only got to see him in the one game that I went to with some coworkers.”

“And you bought this guys jersey and put in the work to alter it after only one game?” Jake raised an eyebrow.

“Well I had thought I was going to make it to more games.” Cassie shrugged. “But before I had the chance to go to any more games I ended up moving.”

“That's kinda a shame.” Jake said.

“How so?” Cassie asked.

“That kind of thing is a good way to make friends with people you don't have that much in common with.” Jake said, missing the raised eyebrow Cassie shot him. “Not sure I even want to count the number of games I've watched in person or on a TV at a bar with people I've worked with.”

“I can see that.” Cassie smiled at him. “But I seem to be able to make friends pretty easy. Also I tend to move around a lot.”

“A bit of wanderlust?” Jake chuckled.

“You could say that. There's a lot of world out there to see and only so many days to see it all.” She sighed.

Jake pulled her back into a hug and a light kiss.

“Speaking of the rest of the world, we have a movie to get to before we head over to Epcot to meet up with the kids.” She said brightening back up.

“Yes we do.” Jake smiled. “Lead the way your highness.”

 

After a stop at the concessions stand Jake and Cassie took their seats. Cassie flipped the armrest between them out of the way, tucked her feet underneath her, and curled up against Jake. He put his arm around her and smiled at the happy noises she made as she snuggled closer.

The lights dimmed and Jake tried to open the snacks they had picked up one handed. He managed to tear open the box of Junior Mints with his thumb, but the bag of licorice foiled his efforts. Cassie noticed his struggles. Trying to suppress a fit of giggles she took the package from him and opened it. She pulled out a piece and waved it in front of Jakes face as he tried to chomp at it without spilling the other candies or popcorn. The display proved too much for Cassie and the giggles erupted into full blown laughter. Jake used the distraction to catch the licorice in his teeth and yank it out of her hand. The move caught her attention. She turned to face him with a smirk, then caught the other end of the licorice rope in her mouth and began nibbling away at it. Jake recognized the moment and began chewing down his end until they met in a picture perfect Lady and the Tramp kiss.

The opening Disney fanfare drew their attention back to the screen. They snuggled up to each other and settled in to watch the movie.

 

Quite a few times during the movie Jake noticed Cassie humming along with the music and what looked almost like she was conducting. But not quite. A few times she seemed to be plucking things out of the air and moving them around. He grinned at her so obviously enjoying herself and let himself be drawn back into the movie.

 

As the screen faded to black after the movie ended Cassie started bouncing in her seat and she excitedly slapped Jake's knee.

“This is it!” She whispered smiling up at him. She quickly gathered all the snacks they had left and set them on the seat next to her.

The short film started with a short explanation of the origin of the film in English and French followed by an animation of the signatures of both Walt Disney and Salvador Dali. It wasn't until the film started and Jake saw Dali's style in motion, when he went to gasp, that he realized he had been holding his breath in anticipation.

A couple of minutes into the film the woman on screen was making her way up a spiraling path. As she moved around the various statues and figures in her way she began to twirl and dance. Throwing her arms out to her sides as she spun. Jake recognized the movements he had seen just the day before and snapped his head around to look at Cassie. He found that she was watching him with a smile on her face. He nodded at the dancing woman on the screen. Cassie simply giggled and shrugged, then gently turned his head back to the screen so he would not miss a moment.

He was mesmerized watching the rest of the film. As the credits ended and the screen faded to black leaned back into his seat. He hadn't even noticed he had been slowly inching forward over the course of the short. He looked over at Cassie, who was still watching him.

“That...was incredible. Thank you.” He said then leaned in and kissed her.

Once they broke apart Cassie just smiled at him, not wanting to interrupt anything else he might have to say. She had watched him as he had watched the film. The look on his face was similar to one she had seen hundreds of times since she had started work at the park. It was the look she saw on the faces of the children meeting a real living breathing person that they think is their favorite character come to life. But the look on Jake's face had been so much more. The closest she could come to describing it was almost as if she was witnessing him having a religious experience.

“I mean, you study these masters. You learn their techniques. You might even have the chance to see their works in person. But never in my whole life did I ever even consider that I might get the opportunity to see one of them come to life like this.” Jake smiled at her. “And I never would have if it wasn't for you.”

“Hey, I just work here.” Cassie giggled. “But you're welcome.”

Jake pulled her close and kissed her again as the Disney fanfare signaled the beginning of the last movie.

 

“That was amazing.” Jake said as they walked out of the theater about an hour later. “I had never looked at animation like that before.”

“I'm glad I could help.” Cassie smiled at him.

“I'm serious.” Jake chuckled. “And it's not just the animation. I have never met anyone that looks at the world the way you do.”

“I doubt that.” Cassie smiled and blushed slightly.

“I'm not kidding darlin'.” Jake said as he scooped her up and twirled her around. “Never met anybody like you.”

Cassie threw her head back, spread her arms out to her sides, and laughed as they spun.

“So.” Jake finally said as he set Cassie back on her feet. “How many paintings did we just see?”

“Well.” Cassie smirked and mimed cracking her knuckles. “Between the three films the approximate total runtime was two hundred and six minutes or twelve thousand three hundred and sixty seconds. For an approximate grand total of two hundred ninety-six thousand six hundred and forty frames of film. However some adjustments must be made. The credits are produced differently from the animation. There were also live action segments that must be accounted for. Finally we must also adjust for the fade outs when there was no light...light...light travels at one hundred eighty-six thousand two hundred eighty-seven miles per second, eleven million one hundred seventy-seven thousand two hundred twenty miles per minute.” She began waving her hands at the air in front of her. “Oh please, not now.” She mumbled. “Light from the sun reaches Mercury in three point two minutes. Venus in six minutes. Earth in eight point three minutes. Mars in twelve point six minutes. Jupiter in forty-three point two minutes. Light travels six hundred seventy-one million miles per hour. Reaching Saturn in one hour nineteen point three minutes. Uranus in two hours thirty-nine point six minutes. Neptune in four hours six minutes. Pluto in five hours thirty minutes. It travels sixteen billion one hundred four million miles per day. Five trillion eight hundred eighty-one billion nine hundred eighty-six million miles per year. It takes light four point three years to reach Alpha Centauri. Fantasia came out in 1940, light that left our sun when this movie came out would have now traveled four hundred twenty-nine trillion three hundred eighty-four billion nine hund-” She cut off as she stumbled and fell. Jake lunged forward and caught Cassie before she was even halfway to the ground.

“What's going on?” He asked calmly.

“It's... summer smells.” She said still staring off into the air and twitching slightly. “It's oranges.”

“Listen.” Jake said as Cassie flinched at something he didn't see and tried to pull away. She seemed to be verging on hyperventilating. “Listen, listen, listen to me. I might have a trick. Listen, listen. Alright? Now your sensations need a context. One place, when you remember smelling the oranges. A strong memory, stronger than the smell.”

“It's breakfast!” She winced.

“Ok.” He said.

“It's breakfast, I'm...” Cassie trailed off.

“There you go.” He gently prodded.

“I'm twelve.” She haltingly continued.

“Alright.” He said. “That's a girl. Right there. Lock in on that.”

“My dad's doing the bills and I balance the checkbook in my head. He's proud of me. They're both so proud of-” A small smile flickered across her face before she focused back on the world around her. She glanced at Jake and gently pulled away from him, a slight look of embarrassment on her face. “How'd you do that?”

“It's Boccioni. He was an Italian artist in the 1800's. He was a Synesthete.” Jake smiled at her. “I read his memoirs when I was researching for a paper I was going to publish and he mentioned that little trick in there.”

“I think that was the last time they were ever really proud of me.” She said sadly.

“Well parents ain't ever easy Cassie.” He said.

“That is very true.” She sighed.

“But one thing Boccioni never mentioned,” Jake said reached for his back pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. “Was nosebleeds.”

“Oh dammit.” Cassie said as she took it and held the cloth to her nose.

Jake helped her to her feet and walked her over to a nearby bench where they sat down.

“You know, I'd like to read those sometime.” Cassie said, her voice slightly muffled by the handkerchief.

“What?” Jake said slipping back out of his hyper aware caretaker state of mind.

“Boccioni's memoirs and the paper you published on him.” Cassie said.

“The paper...I...oh shit!” Jake's eye went wide and he looked around in a panic.

“What? What's wrong? What did I say?” Cassie began to panic as well.

“No. No no no. It wasn't you.” Jake said taking her hand. “It was me. I told ya I don't know what's gonna come out of my mouth around you.”

“What?” Cassie was obviously confused.

“I've gotta ask you something Cass. And it's a big ask.” Jake rubbed the back of his neck while looking down at his feet. “If you don't want to I won't put you in that position.”

“I can't very well decide if you don't ask the question.” Cassie giggled trying to lighten the tension she suddenly found herself in.

“Ok.” Jake sighed. “What I am about to tell you, if you agree, I gotta ask that you don't tell anybody. Especially my family. They don't know. Nobody knows.”

“Did I just go on a date with a murderer? Or maybe a world famous jewel thief?” Cassie giggled. “Oh! Are you D.B. Cooper?”

“Nothing nearly that nefarious.” Jake smirked. “But you still haven't answered the question.”

“If it's that important I won't tell anyone. Not even the twins.” Cassie smiled and held out her pinkie.

Jake chuckled, then took her pinkie and kissed it.

“Thank you darlin'. I've never told anybody any of this.” Jake sighed again. “As the twins might put it, I am crazy smart.”

“And just how crazy is crazy smart?” Cassie smirked.

“Certifiable?” Jake smirked back.

“Smart alec.” Cassie swatted his arm. “Does 'certifiable' have a numerical designation cowboy?”

“Yeah.” He shrugged.

“Are you going to tell me?” Cassie chuckled.

“Gimme a second.” Jake said. “Never trusted anybody enough to tell them any of this stuff. I need to work up the nerve to say it out loud.”

“I know the feeling.” Cassie sighed. “Take all the time you need.”

Cassie slid across the bench and laid her head on his shoulder. He put his arms around her and hugged her.

“Thank you.” He said, then took a deep breath. “One ninety.”

“One ninety?” Cassie looked up at him.

“Me. I have an I.Q. of one hundred and ninety.” Jake said.

“Impressive.” She smiled. “But why would you keep that a secret?”

“That's just the tip of the iceberg.” Jake sighed.

“Oh really?” Cassie said.

“Yeah. My Pop is what you would call a man's man.” Jake sighed. “In general his idea of entertainment involves either John Wayne 'killin injuns',” he dropped into what Cassie assumed was an impression of his father. “350 pound guys bashing into each other, or guys on the backs of pissed off livestock.”

“Westerns, football, and rodeos.” Cassie said. “Not all that surprising being from Oklahoma.”

“Yeah. But he is even more than that. For instance,” Jake tugged on Cassie's jersey sleeve. “He thinks baseball 'is for pansies since you can't hurt the other guy'.”

“Oh.” Cassie said quietly.

“When he occasionally ventures outside Westerns, he will only consider a movie if it has an abundance of explosions and gunfire. If something doesn't blow up or somebody doesn't get shot at every five minutes he considers it 'too talky'.” He grumbled. “And I'm pretty sure the only reading he has done since he graduated high school that wasn't work related is the sports section.”

“That's not all bad, is it?” Cassie asked softly. “People have preferences.”

“It wouldn't be if that's all it was.” Jake sighed.

“Oh?” Cassie said.

“You know how most teenage boys hide girly magazines under their mattress?” Jake said.

“I'll take you word for that one.” Cassie giggled.

“Oh, uh, yeah.” Jake blushed “Anyway. I hid books under my bed.”

“Should I ask what _kind_ of books?” Cassie giggled again.

“Nothin' like that darlin'.” Jake chuckled, then kissed Cassie on the forehead. “Art history, classic literature, poetry. All that sort of stuff.”

“Why?” Cassie asked. “I mean, why did you hide the books?”

“Pop thought all that stuff was a waste of time for his only son to learn.” Jake said. “He always said he planned on me taking over the family business.”

“That seems normal enough from what I understand of normal families.” Cassie said.

“He always said it. He never once asked if it was what I wanted.” Jake grumbled. “Not to mention once I started working for him and learning the business he never followed through. For years he told me he was going to change the name of the company to Stone and Son and give me fifty percent ownership. It never happened.”

“Oh.” Cassie said.

“The longer I worked, the more I learned, the less satisfied he was.” Jake said through clenched teeth. “Nothing I ever did for the man was good enough. The better I did the worse he reacted.”

“Oh Jake. I'm so sorry.” Cassie said wrapping her arms around him. “If it helps any I can relate. I know all about not being able to live up to your parents expectations.”

“Really?” Jake looked down at her.

“Yeah. They had dreams for me. Dreams that I think we just too big to survive the reality of my situation.” Cassie sighed. “But don't let me interrupt. Go on.”

“Ok. I ended up teaching myself a whole lot of stuff over the years in secret. When I got my drivers license I got myself a library card from a town 50 miles away just so I could check out books without taking the chance anybody would recognize me.” He said. “Sometimes I would go visit my sisters once they went to college at OU just so I could use the libraries and everything at the university. But I still needed to be careful I didn't get spotted by anybody that knew me. Fortunately the place was huge. Tons of alcoves and reading nooks.”

“Wow. That seems a bit extreme.” Cassie said.

“Had to be. Not only would he have taken me out to woodshed and whooped me for not being the son he wanted, when I was like 10 he found a book of poetry by Lord Byron in my room. He nearly threw it the fireplace. Only reason he didn't was because Georgia stopped him. She claimed it was hers, that she needed it for school, and she had left it in my room. She got off light. He was so mad he almost backhanded her, but in the end he just grounded her for a week for filling my head with 'that girly shit'.” Jake shook his head angrily. “He always expected me to be just like him. Varsity football and the easy grades that went with it, date a cheerleader, then after high school spend the rest of my life digging holes in the dirt.”

“Oh my god!” Cassie gasped. “I am so sorry.”

“It's not your fault darlin'. I never wanted to be him. Even if he wasn't a nasty bastard and an even meaner drunk, he is satisfied living his whole life in the little bubble he has built for himself. That's part of why I want the kids to get to see Epcot. They deserve to know there is a whole world out there. That way maybe they will have some curiosity and with some luck get to go out there and explore. Instead of staying up at night with a flashlight teaching themselves about all those cultures. Their art, their architecture, their history, their languages. And trust me, some of those pronunciations versus spelling are a real bear if you don't get to hear them spoken aloud.” Jake chuckled.

“Oh really?” Cassie smiled at the sound.

“Yeah. I'm fluent in nine languages, not counting English. I can read over a dozen more.” He shrugged.

“Holy cow.” Cassie said. “Which one was hardest?”

“Oh boy. I'm not even sure any more.” Jake said. “But I can tell you my Gaelic still stinks. Still mispronounce that alias most of the time.”

“Alias?” Cassie raised an eyebrow.

“Dangit. See what you do to me?” Jake laughed. “Didn't actually mean to say that either.”

“So you really are a serial killer? Or are you a spy?” Cassie poked him in the side making him squirm.

What is it with you and jumping right to murder?” Jake laughed. “But being a spy could be fun.”

“Yeah. Secret agent does sound like it could be loads of fun.” Cassie said. “Traveling the world fighting super villains. Saving the world every week.”

“That does sound awful fun. Heck, I wouldn't even need the whole secret agent thing. I'd be happy just getting to see the world.” Jake sighed. “Especially if I could see it with somebody that would appreciate it too.”

“Now _that_ sounds amazing.” Cassie smiled. “So if you aren't a spy what do you need with an alias?”

“It's multiple aliases actually.” Jake rubbed the back of his neck.

“Do tell.” Cassie prodded.

Jake took a deep breath then blew it out.

“I am seven of the worlds leading experts on various types of art history from around the world. Primarily European and Native American, but I'm passable on India, east Asia, Australia and the south Pacific, and the Middle East and Egypt. My sub-Saharan African knowledge could use some work. I am working on it though.” He shrugged.

“Damn.” Cassie whistled.

“What?” Jake smiled at her innocently.

“You say that like everybody can rattle off a list of credentials like that.” Cassie said.

“They can't?” Jake smirked.

“Smart alec.” Cassie swatted him on the arm. “But what I don't get it is why so many aliases. Or why you need an alias at all?”

“Part of it was because of Pop. As long as I didn't put my own name on anything there was no chance that he would find out somehow.” Jake sighed. “Also the first paper I submitted for publication never would have seen the light of day without an alias.”

“Why is that?” Cassie said.

“For starters, no matter how good a paper is, nobody in their right mind was going to publish a paper written by a fifteen year old from the middle of nowhere Oklahoma.” Jake said. “Then as time went on I realized that in the art world, probably like math and science, people tend to specialize in such small areas that nobody would ever believe that one person could be so deeply versed in as many different specialities as I am. It just seemed easier to create different names for each area of study.”

“I guess that makes sense. Kinda.” Cassie said. “But don't you want to be yourself. I mean you could tell all your nieces and nephews so much more about the world than any of the people working over in Epcot today could ever hope to.”

“I probably could. But Epcot is the closest _I've_ been to any of these places too. I know all sorts of things about all sorts of places, but I've never been to any of them. Never seen any of them with my own two eyes.” Jake sighed. “I'm the first person the call when they discover a new piece of art and I'm the one they are scared to call because I can spot a fake from a handful of digital pictures, but I have never stood in front of the Mona Lisa. I've never seen Big Ben, or the Eiffel Tower, or the Pyramids at Giza, or the Great Wall of China, or the Sydney Opera House, or the Roman Colosseum, or anything for that matter. I haven't even seen the Hollywood sign or the Statue of Liberty for crying out loud. I've got honorary degrees from universities on four different continents and the closest I've ever gotten to leaving North America is an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.”

“Then why don't you change that?” Cassie asked simply.

“I...I...I don't know.” Jake finally said.

“It's not like you're fifteen any more.” She smiled.

“That is true. You know, seems like math isn't the only thing you're good at darlin'.” Jake leaned down and kissed her.

Once the broke apart Cassie realized she was still holding Jake's handkerchief.

“Oh! Here.” She said.

“Doing better?” He asked.

“Yeah. It happens sometimes when I go too deep.” She shrugged.

“Too deep?” Jake raised an eyebrow.

“Too deep into a complex equation or formula.” Cassie said.

“I don't remember Boccioni saying anything about nosebleeds.” Jake said. “Was that a Synesthesia thing?”

“Yeah it is, sorta.” Cassie said quietly. Then suddenly she perked back up. “Speaking of, did you write that Boccioni paper last night?”

“No. Why?” Jake said warily.

“Then yesterday when I told you I was a Synesthete you already knew what that meant?” She glared.

“Sorta kinda.” Jake said sheepishly.

“You _jerk_.” Cassie laughed and swatted him on the arm again.

“The dumb redneck mask is my default. Plus I had only known you for like an hour at that point.” Jake grinned. “A ginger ale, three rides on the Haunted Mansion, and your incredible insights into animation as an art form. Plus a truckload of flirting.”

“Fair enough.” Cassie smiled. “What a difference a day makes.”

“What a difference.” He nodded. “You're sure you're ok?”

“As ok as I'm gonna get without a bit of magic of my own.” Cassie sighed.

Jake just raised an eyebrow at her.

“The nosebleeds are linked to my Synesthesia, but they aren't directly caused by it. All five of my senses are cross wired. It is incredibly rare for that to happen on its own.” She said.

“And by 'on its own' you mean?” Jake said.

“Have you ever heard of Oligodendroglioma?” Cassie looked up at him.

“No I haven't. And that means what in english for those of us in the audience that aren't neurologists?” Jake said trying to lighten the mood even a little bit.

“It's...it's...it's a brain tumor. Right about here.” She tapped the side of her head just into her hairline behind her temple. “That's why get nosebleeds. Also the whole hand waving thing. I see all those equations and everything all around me.”

“Wow.” Jake said quietly.

“Thank you for catching me by the way. It's a nice change of pace from having to pick myself up off the ground.” Cassie smiled and kissed him on the cheek. “That happens far more often than the nosebleeds. But I think I'd take more nosebleeds in exchange for fewer skinned knees and bruises.”

“I'll be here to catch you for the next few days if you need me.” Jake pulled her close.

“That's very sweet. Thank you.” Cassie said. “Probably the first good thing to have come of this whole blasted brain tumor thing.”

“Ya know darlin', you don't have to tell me any of this.” Jake said softly.

“I know. But I feel like I should. I mean you said it yourself, you just told me something that nobody else on earth knows.” Cassie said.

“You shouldn't feel like you need to even the score or anything. That's not why I told you.” Jake said.

“I know that. That's not why I'm telling you either. It's like you said. It feels like you could say anything to me. I feel the same way about you.” Cassie said. “I feel like I can be honest with you in a way that I've never really been with anyone else. I want to tell you.”

“I'm flattered.” Jake smirked.

“You should be cowboy. I know I am.” Cassie winked at him. “It's only been a day but I like you Jacob. A lot. It just feels like you should know the truth.”

“I can't say I disagree.” Jake said. “Just the fact that you know who I really am is already a huge weight off my shoulders.”

“Enjoy it while you can. I'm not sure the feeling will last if I keep talking.” Cassie tried to smile.

“I'm willing to take that chance.” Jake kissed her lightly.

“Where should I even start?” Cassie said half to herself.

“Anywhere you want. I'm not going anywhere.” Jake said.

“You'd be the first.” Cassie sighed. Jake raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. After several moments she continued. “My tumor...it's...I'm...”

“Take your time Cass.” Jake whispered.

She closed her eyes and took a slow deep breath.

“I'm dying.” She whispered. Then slightly louder, “I'm dying. Someday, sooner or later, the tumor is going to kill me.”

“What about surgery?” Jake asked without thinking.

“Because of where it is and the limitations of current surgical technology the odds of successfully removing it are less than one percent. If I didn't die on the table it's almost certain I would end up brain dead.” Cassie said matter-of-factly.

“Oh.” Jake whispered.

“I've come to terms with it.” She smiled sadly at him. “It's been a long time.”

Jake was quiet for several moments.

“Eighth grade trig?” He asked cautiously.

“Yeah. Before that I was just _crazy smart_ , as the twins would put it.” She smiled. “Super math, kicking butt and taking names at every science fair I entered, a whole wall full of trophies. The whole nine yards for your typical child genius.”

“Must have been nice getting to be yourself, while it lasted.” Jake sighed.

“It was, up to a point.” Cassie said. “My parents had all sorts of plans for me. They had decided what university I was going to by the time I was six. They had picked my major and the career that I was going to have before I turned seven. And all of that 'required' my total focus on school. I didn't get to watch tv. I didn't get to go to the movies on weekends with my friends, not that I had that many friends to begin with. Never got to come here as a kid. They told me Santa wasn't real when I was three. But through it all, they never asked if it was what I wanted to do.”

“Oh darlin'.” Jake pulled her into a tight hug.

“Then this happened.” She tapped the side of her head. “And super math turned into hallucinations, nosebleeds, and seizures. After the MRI when they found the tumor I dropped out of school. I came home one day and they had thrown out all my trophies. They said they thought they would be a painful remind of who I used to be. I actually think they were a reminder for my parents of the future they planned I wasn't going to have. It felt like they loved the dream they had of my future more than they loved me.”

Jake reached up and wiped away a tear that had rolled down Cassie's cheek. She smiled up at him and kissed his hand.

“Not long after I turned sixteen my great aunt got hurt. It wasn't anything serious. She took a tumble and was going to need help around the house for a few weeks while she healed. So I went to stay with her because she didn't have any children. It wasn't like I had anything else going on. I was nearly a ghost in my own home after the diagnosis. It felt like I had died and was just haunting my parents.” Cassie said. “So I jumped at the chance to get out of there, even for a little while. It was just about the best thing that ever happened to me. While I was there I got to be normal. I got to make friends with some of the kids my age that lived in the neighborhood. I got to go hang out at the mall and go to the movies and things that normal kids do. And my aunt _loved_ movies. During the day when everybody else was in school we would sit and watch movies and eat popcorn all day long. I finally got to be a kid.”

“She sounds great.” Jake said.

“She is, and I think she'd like you.” Cassie smiled. “She told my parents that she wasn't healing quite as fast as the doctors had thought she would and asked if I could stay longer the one time they called to check in. And they weren't really calling to check in, they were setting up travel arrangements for my trip home. That got me a few more weeks. She had heard about the tumor and everything from my parents not long after it happened. Then they told her again before I went up 'just to make sure she knew how to handle' me and my condition. But it wasn't until I was staying with her that she got to hear my side of it. She had only heard about 'how brilliant little Cassandra is' and 'what a bright future Cassandra has in front of her'. She never knew that I wasn't allowed to watch tv or go to the movies or any of that stuff. Needless to say she was a bit horrified. So the next time my parents called to see if they needed to buy me a plane ticket yet she asked if I could just move in with her. She really played up how lonely she had been and how much she enjoyed having me there to keep her company. I went home for a few days to pack all my things, then moved out of my parents house.”

“I'm glad you had her.” Jake kissed her forehead.

“Me too. I wouldn't be here without her.” Cassie smiled.

“Oh really?” Jake said.

“Yeah. It was my nineteenth birthday. We were at home eating the most exquisite chocolate cake I ever tasted. I was going to meet a few friends later and do some birthday stuff with them too, but she wanted to have the family party at home first so I wouldn't be worrying about getting home before she fell asleep. But we were talking about all the places she had wanted to see but had never gotten the chance to. She had married young and then been the dutiful wife until my great uncle died. By then she felt like it was too late to travel that much. She said having me around was making her feel young again. My birthday present that year was a trip for the two of us for a week at Niagara Falls. About a month later we went out to Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard. We ended up taking a trip nearly every month that whole year to somewhere neither of us had been. That was when I decided that I wasn't going to let my situation keep me from living my life the way I want to. I'm not going to have the chance to wait until retirement age to go see the world. Once we had completed the list of places close enough that she was still comfortable traveling to them I told her about my decision. Honestly I think she was happier about it than I was. She made me promise to go see as much of the world as I could, and send her pictures and postcards. And she made sure that I knew that I can always come home for any reason.”

“Wow. She really does sound amazing.” Jake said.

“She is. That house was more of a home to me in just four years than my parents house was in sixteen. She told me that place will always be my home. She even told me she is leaving the house to me in her will. Assuming she goes first.” Cassie sniffled. “But anyway, that's how I ended up here. I've been moving around ever since. It's one thing to go to a place for a week or two and see the sights. It's another to live in a place and really experience it.”

“That sounds like a hell of a way to see the world.” Jake whistled. “Wish I could share in that experience. But the only really difference between all the places I've lived is the average temperature at the work site, the name of the local sports team everyone in town followed like a religion, and the color of the walls in the furnished apartment I rented while I was there. Everything else in those towns has been about as cookie cutter as they come.”

“It's never too late.” She smiled at him. “I'm getting pretty close to being ready to head to Europe. I want to make sure I have enough to get there and enough money to be able to live on for a couple of months once I get there in case I can't find work right away.”

“That's pretty smart.” Jake smiled.

“Do you really expect any less?” Cassie batted her eyes.

“I guess not.” Jake laughed. “Ya know darlin', sounds like our situations ain't that different. I've got a place back in Oklahoma. Bought the house in cash so It's always there waiting for me to come back to if I want. My living expenses are pretty small so I do have a few bucks set aside. Just never really had any idea what to do with the money. I could go walkabout if I wanted.”

“Walkabout?” Cassie said.

“It's an Indigenous Australian term. Traditionally it's a rite of passage into manhood when a boy goes out and lives in the wilderness on his own. Proves he can survive on his own, goes on various vision quests and the like. Over the centuries since Europeans, well settled isn't exactly the right word since England used Australia as a prison colony, but let's just say since they showed up there it has come to mean something more akin to a nomadic lifestyle.” Jake said.

“You know something.” Cassie looked up at him. “I think you would make an amazing teacher.”

“Nah.” Jake shook his head.

“If you say so.” Cassie smiled to herself. “You know something else.”

“I should be an astronaut too?” Jake chuckled.

“Nope. More along the lines of living a normal life.” Cassie said as she pulled herself into Jake's lap. ”I hear there's this thing that normal people do when they go on a date to the movies that we didn't do.”

“Oh really?” Jake smiled. “We got popcorn and candy and drinks. We watched the movie. What's left?”

“I believe the kids call it 'making out'.” Cassie smirked and pulled Jake into a kiss.

Several minutes later they were interrupted by Jake's stomach growling.

“Oh you stay out of this.” Jake grumbled.

Cassie giggled as she pulled out her phone and checked the time.

“Oh my goodness. No wonder your stomach is growling. It's nearly 1:30. The kids are probably starving to death.” Cassie said obviously starting to worry as she jumped to her feet. “We should get going now!”

“Agreed.” Jake said pulling out his phone.

 

Jacob: _Hey sis. You guys ready to eat? We are headed for the monorail right now._

Georgia: _Yeah. Was about to send out a search party 4 u 2. Thought maybe you had snuck back over to buzz lightyear to make out some more._

Jacob: _Nah. We were just sitting here on a bench makin out. Fewer interruptions. :p_

Georgia: _How romantic. :p_

Jacob: _Well we got kicked out of the theater after the movie ended and we didn't notice._

Georgia: _Charming. :p_

Jacob: _So who all is coming?_

Georgia: _Jen was feeling kinda nauseous and run down so her & dan went back to the room. Mom & dad too. They both were feeling tired so they went to go lay down for a bit. Me & greg & jess & alex are wrangling the kids. Joyce & jeff have wandered off somewhere but they know we are headed to epcot so they might show up eventually._

Jacob: _Sounds good. Meet outside the monorail platform? Then we can go find food._

Georgia: _Perfect. See ya in a few._

 

“You're gonna get to meet my baby sister Jessica and her boyfr- dangit. Her fiancé Alex.” Jake said. “Looks like everybody else will have to wait until dinner I guess.”

“That's ok.” Cassie smiled as she looped her arm through his. “Probably just as well to meet a few at a time.”

“Yeah. I can see that. You are gonna be the focus of attention after all.” Jake chuckled. “Oh and fair warning. I _may_ have told Georgia that we were running late because we were making out on that bench after getting kicked out of the theater because we didn't notice the movie was over.”

“And _why_ did you do that?” Cassie pulled him to a stop.

“Hey! She started it.” Jake said.

_“Really?”_ Cassie said.

“Yup. Said she was about to send a search party over to Buzz Lightyear in case we had snuck back over there to make out.” Jake smirked. “Plus neither of us really want to tell her about the conversation we had that's the real reason we are so late.”

“You've got a point there.” Cassie said.

“And we were making out on that bench, so I wasn't even really lying. Much.” Jake said as he pulled her into another kiss.

“You are just terrible, Jacob Stone.” Cassie giggled once they broke apart.

“You weren't complaining a few minutes ago on the bench. Or yesterday.” Jake winked.

“That is so not what I meant and you know it.” Cassie laughed and swatted his shoulder.

“Well we could stand here debating what I do and don't know while you assault me, or we could go get some lunch.” Jake smiled. His statement punctuated by another growl of his stomach.

“Sounds good to me. Race you to the monorail.” Cassie smirked.

“You're on.” Jake took a ready position.

“Ready.” Cassie grabbed Jake and kissed him. “Setgo!”

Cassie bolted as Jake was still slightly dazed from the sudden kiss.

“You cheater!” Jake shouted after her as he started running.

Cassie winked at him over her shoulder, then blew him a kiss. She darted around a flower bed and Jake lost sight of her. When Jake finally made it to the monorail platform he found Cassie leaning against a pillar looking bored out of her skull, like she had been waiting on him for an hour.

“You. Cheated.” Jake pointed at her.

“Who me?” Cassie batted her eyes at him.

“Yes you.” Jake smiled and pulled her into a kiss of his own. “And if that's the way you are going to cheat me out of every race I think I can get used to losing.”

Cassie laughed as the monorail pulled into the station.

“I'll keep that in mind.” She winked as she pulled him into a car.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Forgot to add this when I first posted. The twins Maggie and Mattie are a bit of an easter egg borrowed from the "As Time Goes By" series by justlook3. Probably more commonly known as "Glue Sticks and Crayons" and "Lunch Boxes and Markers". If you haven't read that AU yet, do yourself a favor and go check it out. It is so good.


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